BJP moving closer to sweeping win in Gujarat local body polls; Cong, AAP struggle to keep pace

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is heading towards a decisive victory in the Gujarat local body elections, taking an unassailable lead over rival Congress and other parties, winning 6,472 of more than 9,900 seats as counting is underway on Tuesday, officials said. According to the latest data shared by the State Election Commission (SEC), the Congress has secured 1,412 seats, while Independents and other parties, including the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and AIMIM, have bagged 597 seats. The BJP has emerged victorious in nine out of 15 municipal corporations, securing over half of the total seats in Surendranagar, Jamnagar, Porbandar, Karamsad-Anand, Nadiad, Navsari, Vapi, Surat and Morbi, officials said. In district panchayats, the ruling party has already won 30 of the 34 bodies, crossing the halfway mark in all of them. The saffron party has also secured 50 per cent seats in Arvalli and Patan, while it is still short of the halfway mark in Chhota Udepur. The BJP suffered a setback in the Narmada district panchayat, where AAP clinched 15 of 22 seats, restricting the ruling party to only three seats, while the results of four seats are awaited. The BJP is far ahead of its rivals and has won 3,132 seats in taluka panchayats, 765 in district panchayats, 1,827 in municipalities, and 748 in municipal corporations so far. The main opposition party, Congress, has bagged 839 seats in taluka panchayats, 110 in district panchayats, 399 in municipalities, and 64 in municipal corporations so far. Counting began at 9 AM across centres in the state under heavy security arrangements. Polling for 15 municipal corporations, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats was held on Sunday. More than 4.18 crore voters were eligible to exercise their franchise. Voter turnouts stood at 55.1 per cent for municipal corporations, 65.53 per cent for municipalities, 66.64 per cent for district panchayats, and 67.26 per cent for taluka panchayats, according to the Election Commission. Among municipal corporations, the newly-formed Gandhidham in Kutch district recorded the lowest turnout at 46.03 per cent, while Vapi in Valsad district logged the highest voting percentage at 72.29 per cent. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation reported a turnout of 51.81 per cent. Polling was conducted for the first time in nine newly created municipal corporations, including Navsari, Gandhidham, Morbi, Vapi, Anand, Nadiad, Mehsana, Porbandar and Surendranagar. The elections were held under revised norms for Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservations, which required extensive delimitation and ward restructuring in several districts. In March 2021, the BJP scored a landslide win in the local polls in Gujarat, winning 6,236 out of 8,470 seats across various municipalities and establishing a wide gap with the rival Congress. The BJP had then dominated all six municipal corporations, 81 municipalities, 32 district panchayats, and 231 taluka panchayats. The outcome of one of the largest electoral exercises is expected to reflect the general mood of voters ahead of the next year's assembly elections.

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