BJP, Congress share spoils in central Gujarat

VADODARA: BJP gained marginally in central Gujarat wining two more seats as compared to 2012. However, the Congress can take solace from the fact that while it lost two seats, the two independents who won here are rebels and may remain with the party. It was a nail-biting finish in Godhra where CK Raulji, the Congress turncoat, won a see-saw battle and scraped through with a meagre margin of 258 votes. In 2012 too, he had won by just 2,868 votes.

Two other turncoats – Amul Dairy chairman Ramsinh Parmar and Mansinh Chauhan – also bit the dust in Thasra and Balasinor respectively. In Lunawada, independent candidate Ratansinh Rathod sprung a surprise by winning with 3,200, while Paranjaydityasinh Parmar, the son-in-law of former

Madhya Pradesh

chief minister

Digvijay Singh

at a distant third.

The biggest upset in the region was former Gujarat Congress president

Siddharth Patel

who lost to Vadodara councillor Shailesh Mehta alias Sotta.

The BJP’s dominance on the five seats of Vadodara continued with the Congress struggling on these. On the five rural parts of Vadodara district, however, the BJP lost Karjan and Padra to the Congress. The tribal belt in the region the Congress faltered, albeit only slightly with the party getting five seats as compared to seven in 2012. In Morva Hadaf, independent candidate Bhupendrasinh Khant finally tasted victory as he won by a margin of 4,366 votes. Khant had contested the by-elections for this seat which his mother had won in 2012 but slipped into coma on the day results were declared. After she died, BJP’s Nimisha Suthar had won the seat and Khant had lost then.

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