High-decibel campaign for Guj polls’ Phase 1 concludes
GANDHINAGAR: A high-decibel campaign for the first-phase of Gujarat assembly polls ended on Tuesday evening with leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) reaching out to voters through rallies, roadshows and public meetings.
Voting for 89 out of 182 seats will be held on December 1. A total of 788 candidates are in the fray for these seats across 19 districts of south Gujarat and Kutch-Saurashtra regions.
Gujarat chief electoral officer (CEO) P Bharti said around 23,976,670 out of 43.5 million voters in the state are expected to exercise their franchise on Friday.
The second phase of voting will be held on December 5 and the results will be announced on December 8.
The BJP is looking to secure a seventh straight term in the elections on the back of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity and its development agenda. The state is witnessing the first triangular contest with the Congress and AAP hoping to exploit anti-incumbency.
The final day of the campaign saw several BJP leaders, including party chief JP Nadda, addressing rallies in various parts of the state.
Nadda, who held roadshows in Devgadh baria, Bhavnagara and Vadodara, said: “The AAP and Congress are now shedding crocodile tears for the adivasi brothers and sisters. The BJP established a separate ministry for the adivasis so that development works can be carried out speedily.” Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath held a grand roadshow in Godhra.
On Twitter, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the BJP for its 27 years of “misrule” in Gujarat and said it is time to rebuild Mahatma Gandhi’s land.
The BJP’s campaign, led by Modi, revolved around the “double-engine government” – a reference to the party being in power both at the Centre and in the state – and the Narmada dam project during the Congress regime.
The Prime Minister alone addressed over 25 public gatherings since the election dates were announced on November 3, a BJP functionary said.
The AAP, which is looking to make inroads into BJP’s citadel, focused on providing 300 units of free electricity, implementing the old pension scheme, quality education for all students in government schools and access to free health among others.
Delhi chief minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal held 14 rallies for the first phase. On Monday, he exuded confidence that the party will win more than 92 seats in the polls. In contrast to highdecibel electioneering by the BJP and AAP, the Congress adopted a low-key grassroots approach to the elections.