Set To Win Gujarat Again, BJP Also Leads In Morbi Where 135 Died In Bridge Collapse

A record win for the BJP is certain in Gujarat as well as in Morbi where a bridge collapse led to the death of 135 people.

Set To Win Gujarat Again, BJP Also Leads In Morbi Where 135 Died In Bridge Collapse

As predicted by exit polls, the BJP is set to win Gujarat with record numbers. A saffron victory was not what several had expected in Morbi where a tragic bridge collapse led to the death of 135 people. The BJP had replaced Morbi MLA and minister Brijesh Merja with former MLA Kantilal Amrutiya, who also went viral for jumping into the river to save people when the incident took place.

The video of the leader skirting the waters of the Machchu river had gone viral soon after the tragic incident. He also posted the viral video on his Twitter account.

The BJP is poised for a landslide victory in Gujarat to retain power for a record seventh straight term in Gujarat. The party was, however, behind the Congress in Himachal Pradesh which could go with the trend of alternative governments in the hill state.

After the first four hours of counting of votes in the Assembly elections in the BJP-ruled states of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, early trends showed that the saffron party with a vote share of nearly 54 per cent was ahead in 152 out of 182 seats in the western state and could surpass its previous best showing of 127 seats in 2002 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief minister. Congress holds the all-time record of 149 seats that it had won in 1985 under the leadership of Madhavsinh Solanki.

Banking on the charisma of Modi, who addressed as many as 30 election rallies, the BJP overcame anti-incumbency yet again after being in power for 27 years without losing an election since 1995. It had 99 seats in the outgoing house with a 49.1 per cent vote share.

With its expected huge victory in the home state of Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, the BJP, which focused on a development agenda, was set to equal the Left Front’s feat of seven consecutive terms in West Bengal. The CPI(M)-led Front ruled the eastern state for 34 years from 1977 to 2011.

Though the opposition took on the Modi government over rising inflation, slowing growth and joblessness, the economic troubles apparently did not dent BJP's popularity in Gujarat that has been a bastion of the party for decades and where Modi was chief minister from 2001 to 2014.

Pulverised by the BJP, the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) initially seemed to be locked in a battle to grab the status of the main opposition party in the state with the grand old party having an edge. The Congress and the AAP were leading in 20 and six constituencies respectively.