In a setback to BJP especially Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, Congress on Thursday won the maiden elections to the state capital Gandhinagar’s Municipal Corporation.
In the keenly contested civic polls, Opposition Congress got a simple majority bagging 18 out of 33 seats that was at stake in the newly-constituted Gandhinagar Muncipal Corporation(GC) while ruling BJP won the remaining 15. Senior BJP leader L.K. Advani represents Gandhinagar in the Lok Sabha.
Congress was euphoric after the poll victory observing it was the beginning of the end of the Modi rule while BJP downplayed the defeat saying that Gandhinagar always remained a Congress stronghold.
“The people of Gandhinagar have voted against the Modi government. Congress has started year 2011 with hoisting victory flag in state capital Gandhinagar,” senior Congress leader Narhari Amin said.
“This is the beginning of end of the Modi rule and will be reflected in 2012 Assembly polls. GMC elections have indicated that people want change,” he said in Gandhinagar.
In New Delhi, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari went lyrical over the BJP loss. “It was a case of darkness at the foot of a light house at Gandhinagar and the people there made an attempt to dispel the darkness and move towards light this time. It is a reminder to the changing reality in the state and points to the beginning of the spring of Congress and autumn of BJP there,” Mr Tewari said. Shakti Singh Gohil, a senior party leader from Gujarat, said the Congress victory from the “Prime Minister in waiting Lal Krishna Advani’s constituency will mark the end of BJP from the entire Gujarat”. BJP leaders insisted that this result does not reflect on the popularity and hold of Mr Modi on the state of Gujarat. They maintained that Gandhinagar has always been a Congress stronghold. “We had only six seats earlier. This time we have won 15 while the Congress has got only 18,” a BJP leader said. BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar wondered why there was excitement when the party does not win a election in Gujarat. “When we win 80 per cent of the elections at all levels in Gujarat that is not noticed but when the Congress wins a seat here or a seat there it makes news,” he said. A total of 116 candidates vyed for 33 seats spread across 11 wards of the civic body which was formed following the Gujarat high court order of September 17, 2009. Gandhinagar was a notified area administered by the state government before it announced formation of the municipal corporation on March 17, 2010.
—PTI