Gandhinagar: The ongoing political confrontation between Morbi MLA Kanti Amrutia and Visavadar MLA Gopal Italia intensified on Monday as Amrutia arrived in Gandhinagar with a massive convoy of over 100 vehicles, claiming he was ready to resign if Italia accepted his challenge. However, after waiting until 12:15 pm at the Assembly complex, Amrutia left, stating that Italia failed to show up.

Amrutia, who traveled from his residence in Uma Township, Morbi, asserted that he came prepared with resignation papers. “Gopal Italia invited me to fight. I am here. If he comes, I’ll resign,” he told reporters. Despite waiting until noon, he extended the deadline by two more hours, reiterating his commitment. “If Italia still arrives and takes the oath to resign, I’ll wait,” he said, accusing the AAP leader of misleading the people of Gujarat and spreading false videos since defeating BJP’s Pradeepsinh Jadeja in the Visavadar bypoll.

Acknowledging the challenges in Morbi, Amrutia said a grand Khat Muhurat is scheduled for next Saturday. “Italia’s supporters claimed he would come and do ‘Visavadarwali’ here too. I am true to my word—I came. But he didn’t. If he calls me again, I’ll be there,” he added, warning that certain elements in the Patidar community were being misled.

Responding to the episode, Gujarat Assembly Speaker Shankar Chaudhary said, “I have no comment at this stage. My suggestion is to focus on the work of the people.” Health Minister Rushikesh Patel echoed this, saying, “This is not challenge politics, this is development politics. Gujarat is moving forward with development.”

Earlier, Amrutia had accused Italia and his supporters of inciting Morbi residents by making repeated threats of “Visavadarwali,” aimed at destabilizing the administration. In response, Amrutia challenged Italia to contest from Morbi and offered to resign and reward him with ₹2 crore if Italia won. Italia accepted the challenge in a social media video, triggering a wave of political drama now dubbed as ‘challenge politics.’

The political temperature in Morbi has remained high in recent days due to public protests over civic issues. Just four days ago, Amrutia had toured protest-hit areas late at night with top officials and assured immediate solutions. During these interactions, he directly challenged AAP leader Gopal Italia, who enthusiastically responded, turning the local unrest into a high-stakes political showdown.