Election results LIVE: BJP in close fight with Congress in Gujarat, ahead in Himachal Pradesh
Four out of five exit polls predicted BJP would retain Gujarat, but with a reduced margin.
Ahmedabad/Shimla: Early trends show the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has a slight edge over a resurgent Congress in Gujarat while in Himachal Pradesh it is clearly ahead after counting of votes began sharp at 8 am today.
The BJP and Congress – buoyed this time by traditional BJP voters Patidars and OBCs – was locked in a close fight after a few hours of counting.
Till reports last came in, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was trailing behind Congress candidate Indranil Rajyaguru in Rajkot West. The NCP was leading in one seat.
In Himachal Pradesh, which has alternated between the BJP and the Congress for decades, the BJP was cruising with nearly two-third majority after a few hours of counting.
Read Also: Gujarat poll result 2017 live: In early trends, Cong gives neck and neck fight to BJP
The main contestants from the BJP are Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani (Rajkot West), Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel (Mehsana) and state BJP unit president Jitu Vaghani (Bhavnagar West).
The main contenders from the Congress are Shaktisinh Gohil (Mandvi), Arjun Modhvadia (Porbandar), Siddharth Patel (Dabhoi), and Paresh Dhanai (Amreli).
OBC leader Alpesh Thakor, who joined the Congress ahead of polls, is fighting from Radhanpur seat, while Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani is contesting from Vadgam.
The Gujarat elections were held in two phases on December 9 and 14 and the average voter turnout was 68 per cent, slightly lower than 2012’s 71 per cent.
In 2012, the BJP won 116 seats out of total 182 seats while the Congress won 60 in Gujarat. BJP has been in power in the state since 1995.
Election Commission data showed that constituencies dominated by the Patidar community – which has since the 2015 quota agitation turned against the BJP - saw a turnout of nearly 75 per cent.
This could have been an indication of the electoral manifestation of Patidar anger against the ruling BJP.
This time, Hardik Patel, who led the demand for reservation for his community, openly declared his support for the Congress. The Congress banked heavily on the troika of angry young men of Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakore and Jignesh Mevani, leaders of the Patidar, OBC and Dalit communities.
The BJP has derided the alliance between the OBCs and the Patels as self-contradictory as the two communities would be competing for quota benefits with each other.
Four out of five exit polls predicted BJP would retain Gujarat, but with a reduced margin. One predicted a sweep.
People in Himachal Pradesh have been alternating between the Congress and the BJP in Assembly elections every five years. True to that trend, the exit polls this year predicted a BJP sweep.
Read Also: Early trends of Himachal counting show BJP leading against Congress
In 2012, the Congress defeated BJP and won an outright majority with 36 of the 68 seats under the leadership of Virbhadra Singh. The BJP lagged behind with 26 seats in its kitty whereas its breakaway faction HLP won 1.
BJP’s chief minister designate Prem Kumar Dhumal, the party’s man of the moment in Himachal Pradesh, has vowed to work on women’s safety and to “save the state from the Virbhadra government’s mafia rule”.
Himachal Pradesh registered record vote of 74.61 per cent, breaking the previous best of 75.28 per cent in 2003.
