Ahmedabad | The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday swept the local body elections in Gujarat by winning all 15 municipal corporations that went to the polls and 33 out of 34 district panchayats in the state.
Though final results of 250 taluka panchayats and 84 municipalities were awaited, data from the State Election Commission (SEC) showed that the ruling party has won most of these local bodies while some were bagged by the Congress, AAP and independents.
Polling was held on Sunday for 15 municipal corporations, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats. More than 4.18 crore voters were eligible to cast their ballots.
The BJP emerged as clear winner in the municipal corporations of Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar and Rajkot besides the newly created municipal corporations of Navsari, Gandhidham, Morbi, Vapi, Anand, Nadiad, Mehsana, Porbandar and Surendranagar.
Elections were not held for Gandhinagar and Junagadh corporations as they have a different election cycle.
Barring Narmada district, the BJP also captured 33 district panchayats.
The ruling party lost the Narmada district panchayat to AAP, which won 15 out of 22 seats while the saffron party managed to win only seven seats.
AAP claimed in a statement that it has also won 12 taluka panchayats, including four in Narmada district.
The local bodies won by the Congress included the taluka panchayats of Vyara, Ankalav, Hadad, Palanpur, Sidhpur and Patan, besides Sikka and Jam Raval municipalities.
Overall, the BJP has won 7,491 out of 9,986 seats across local bodies, as per the latest SEC data.
Congress has won 1,740 seats, AAP 489 seats while Independents and other parties including AIMIM have bagged 266 seats.
The BJP has won 3,674 seats in taluka panchayats, 892 in district panchayats, 1,988 in municipalities and 937 in municipal corporations.
Counting began at 9 am under heavy security.
The voter turnout on December 26 was 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.
Among municipal corporations, the newly formed Gandhidham in Kutch district recorded the lowest turnout at 46.03 per cent, while Vapi in Valsad district registered the highest at 72.29 per cent polling. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation reported a turnout of 51.81 per cent.
The elections were held under revised norms for Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservations, which required extensive delimitation and restructuring of wards in several districts.
Though the Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM party failed to win any seats in Ahmedabad this time, three of its candidates won in Bhuj municipality.
Following the results, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the relationship between Gujarat and the Bharatiya Janata Party has "now become even deeper and unbreakable!"
"I express my heartfelt gratitude to the people of Gujarat for the resounding public support and mandate received by the BJP in the municipal corporation, municipality, taluka panchayat, and district panchayat elections held across the state," the PM said in a post on platform X.
Speaking at a press conference, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said he was grateful to the people for again supporting PM Narendra Modi's development-focused politics and delivering a big victory for the BJP.
Former IPS officer Manoj Ninama and former MLA Bhupendra Bhayani, both contesting on BJP tickets, lost.
Ahmedabad | The Gujarat Congress on Tuesday accepted the results of the local body polls, which were swept by the ruling BJP, and vowed to continue its fight for the rights of people, democracy and the Constitution.
Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) president Amit Chavda claimed there were resentment and disappointment among the people of the state against the saffron outfit, which is in power in Gandhinagar for nearly three decades, but these sentiments did not translate into votes.
The Grand Old Party won 1,050 seats in taluka panchayats, 136 in district panchayats, 459 in municipalities and 95 in municipal corporations, totalling 1,740 out of more than 9,200 seats which went to polls on April 26. Counting of votes was held on Tuesday.
On the other hand, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won all the 15 municipal corporations that went to the polls besides 33 out of 34 district panchayats. Though final results of 250 taluka panchayats and 84 municipalities were awaited, State Election Commission (SEC) data showed the ruling party has won most of these local bodies while some were bagged by the Congress, AAP and independents.
"The Congress will continue to fight for the rights of the people, democracy, and the Constitution. We accept the results delivered by the citizens of Gujarat," Chavda said in a video message.
"The disappointment and outrage of people against the misgovernance and corruption of the BJP did not translate into votes," he claimed.
The GPCC chief emphasised voters have given a majority to the Congress in various municipalities and taluka panchayats, where polls were held.
"We will ensure corruption-free administration and address citizens' concerns across all local bodies," Chavda asserted.
The Congress will raise people's issues wherever the party is in Opposition, he assured.
"Our elected representatives will fight for citizens' rights wherever their tax money is being misused or looted," the Congress leader insisted.
"We will become the voice of Gujarat citizens as a responsible Opposition and advance the Congress ideology by engaging with people and winning their trust," Chavda insisted and congratulated the winning party candidates.
New Delhi | The AAP on Tuesday said it put up a strong performance in the Gujarat local body elections by winning one district panchayat - Narmada - and 12 taluka panchayats for the first time.
Also, the party's seat tally across local bodies in Gujarat, where voting took place on April 26, jumped manifold as compared to the 2021 elections.
While the BJP swept the polls by winning all the 15 municipal corporations and 33 out of 34 district panchayats in the state, the AAP clinched the remaining district panchayat, Narmada, besides winning more than 350 seats across local bodies, the results declared on Tuesday showed.
The improved show came as a shot in the arm of the AAP, which received a big jolt last week after seven of its 10 Rajya Sabha MPs, led by Raghav Chadha, merged with the BJP after quitting the party.
Addressing a press conference here, AAP’s Gujarat in-charge Gopal Rai expressed confidence that its tally would cross 400 seats once the counting is complete.
Though final results for 250 taluka panchayats and 84 municipalities were awaited at the time of filing of this report, data from the State Election Commission (SEC) showed that the ruling BJP won most of these local bodies while some were bagged by the Congress, AAP and Independent candidates.
Rai said the AAP contested 5,222 seats in the local body elections and compared its performance with the 2021 polls, when the party won 69 seats.
“In the last local body elections, the AAP won only 69 seats. This time, we have already won 380 seats and we are confident of crossing the 400 mark,” Rai said.
In areas where the AAP contested directly against the BJP, the party emerged as the second-largest force, while the Congress slipped into the third position, Rai claimed.
“According to the results received so far, the AAP has won 380 seats and the Congress 331,” he said.
Rai also alleged that the AAP candidates and leaders faced immense pressure and action during the elections, claiming that several cases were registered against its workers in Gujarat.
More than 250 party candidates and leaders had cases registered against them, while many AAP workers were prevented from campaigning, he alleged.
Despite the challenges, Rai said, the AAP candidates remained in the fray and contested spiritedly.
