IndiaToday.in | Posted by Bijin Jose
New Delhi, December 13, 2017 | UPDATED 18:33 IST
As Gujarat readies itself for the final phase of polling in what has been a high-voltage election, Managing Editor TV Today Rahul Kanwal puts together the big takeaways from the election battlefield.
After the high-octane campaign for the Gujarat Assembly election ended on Tuesday evening, voters are bracing for the polls in the final phase of the election on Thursday.
The results for the much-anticipated elections in Prime Minister 
Narendra Modi's turf will be announced on Monday.
TV Today's Managing Editor Rahul Kanwal puts together the big takeaways from the election battlefield.
HERE ARE THE 10 INSIGHTS BY RAHUL KANWAL ON GUJARAT ASSEMBLY ELECTION.
1. BJP's toughest fight in two decades: Off the record BJP leaders accept that this has been a tough election. Senior leaders reveal that after the rollout of the GST in July the backlash in the state was very strong. What's interesting is that even BJP leaders are no longer talking about snagging 150-plus seats.
2. 
Rahul Gandhi is a changed man: The Congress president-elect has upped his game as a public speaker, there's now a theatrical flourish in his speeches and his messaging is sharp and consistent. Crowds at his rallies are charged and voters genuinely seem excited when Rahul enters the venue.
3. But can he sustain his mojo? Whether Rahul can sustain his newfound political tenacity after counting day is still a big question. Will he again jet off for another long New Year break or get down to the business of rebuilding the party in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, which are due for polls next year?
4. There's no one meta-narrative: In 2017 different campaign themes have played out simultaneously: anti-incumbency, the Patel agitation, joblessness and urban-rural divide among others.
5. Modi is BJP's last man standing: The Narendra Modi of 2017 is like the 
Sachin Tendulkar of the Indian cricket team of the 1990s. If he falls, the BJP falls. Traders, youngsters and farmers are upset thanks to joblessness, demonetisation and GST, but almost no one has anything against the prime minister.
6. BJP's biggest nightmare is a 24-year-old: Though not even eligible to contest the elections, Hardik Patel is boldly daring to go where no Gujarati leader has tread before. Hardik has been calling Modi "feku"; like it was the case with 
Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi, the BJP finds it tough to deal with an adversary who has no skeletons in his closet as well as nothing to lose.
7. Ashok Gehlot can be reborn as Congress' Gujarat strategist: From stitching together alliances with the three young Turks - Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakor and Jignesh Mevani - to distribution of tickets to building a caste coalition...a lot of these successes can be attributed to the low-key and grounded Gehlot, who in typical Congress-style has the ability to listen to everyone and take people along.
8. Indian politics has taken a pro-Hindu turn: In showing off his "janeu" Rahul has also sowed the seeds of re-crafting the Congress party in a pro-Hindu image. By hopping from one temple to another, Rahul is trying to shed the party's anti-Hindu image. Muslims have largely been missing from Rahul Gandhi's campaign narrative.
9. Once a trader, always a trader: Disaffection among traders has been one of the running themes in the hustings. After having given jitters to the BJP leadership and getting the party to concede to most of their demands, traders now quietly admit they will stick with the party.
10. Defeat is not an option: The 2017 poll in Gujarat has shown once again the fighting spirit of Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. They have shown that they don't bother to hedge bets. For them, each battle is do or die and they are willing to do whatever it takes to win.
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