Gandhinagar Feb 23 The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) achieved overwhelming support in the municipal corporation elections in six cities of Gujarat, polling for which was held last Sunday. BJP, an already ruling party in these six municipal corporations, got reelected with a larger number of seats this time.
Out of the total 576 seats of the six municipal corporations, the BJP secured a whopping 485 seats. The opposition Congress was reduced to 45 seats. The Aam Admy Party (AAP), the debutant in the local body elections in Gujarat, secured 27, while the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) led by Assaduddin Owaisi managed to win two wards in Ahmedabad.
Similarly, the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) managed to clinch three seats in the Jamnagar Municipal Corporation.
The BJP won on 159 out of 192 seats in Ahmedabad, far more than the previous 143. The Congress won 24 seats while the AIMIM got 7 seats and there were two independent candidates who got elected.
In Vadodara, the BJP captured 66 seats out of the total 76 seats of the VMC, the rest going to the opposition Congress.
In Rajkot, the hometown of the Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, the BJP gained all 18 wards, except one, which went to the Congress. The BJP captured 68 seats out of the total 72 seats of the RMC, the rest 4 seats won by the opposition Congress. The Congress had secured 34 seats in the previous elections held in 2015.
In Jamnagar, the BJP captured 50 seats out of the total 64 seats of the JMC, while the opposition Congress won 11 seats and the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) took three seats, opening their accounts in Gujarat.
In Bhavnagar, the BJP captured 44 seats out of the total 52 seats of the BMC, the rest going to the opposition Congress.
Making a debut in the state by fielding its candidates for the six municipal Corporations, the Aam Aadami Party (AAP) gained 27 seats in the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) against the BJP's 93 seats, becoming the opposition party in the SMC.
AAP candidates captured ward numbers 2,3,4,5,16 and 17 of the SMC and won 2 seats in ward 7 and single seat in ward 8. Congress could not even secure a single seat in Surat. The new BJP Gujarat chief CR Patil hails from Surat.
Similarly the AIMIM, opening its account in Ahmedabad by winning two wards of Jamalpura and Maktampura, a stronghold of the Congress, sent out a stern warning to the grand old party.
The BSP gaining three seats in ward number 6 of the Jamnagar Municipal Corporation elections sent out a similar warning to the Congress.
Even after decades of continuous rule in the urban Civic bodies, the BJP overrode the anti-incumbency factor.
BJP chief CR Patil, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel addressed huge public meetings marking the victory of party in civic polls in various parts of the state.
( With inputs from IANS )
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