Next target is Gujarat Assembly election, says victorious Ahmed Patel

New Delhi [India], Aug. 09 (ANI): Congress leader Ahmed Patel on Wednesday said party's next target is Gujarat Assembly election.

He came to the national capital from Gujarat where he was camping for the Rajya Sabha elections.

Patel has retained his Rajya Sabha seat from Gujarat by winning 44 votes.

Voting for the three Rajya Sabha seats was conducted on Tuesday.

Patel said it is a big victory because efforts were made to ensure his defeat.

"It is a big victory because the election was tough. Efforts were made to ensure my defeat, but still I won," Patel told ANI.

"Our next target is Gujarat Assembly election, will work for it," he said.

Congress had made candidature of Ahmed Patel as a matter of prestige in the Rajya Sabha polls.

The BJP also left no stone unturned to win all the three seats. The saffron pitted Balwantsinh Rajput, a recent acquisition from the Congress, against Ahmed Patel knowing that Patel's defeat will bring huge embarrassment for Sonia Gandhi since he is her political secretary.

Ahmed Patel's victory has acted as booster for the Congress ahead of the crucial assembly elections in the state. Assembly election will be held in 2017 as the tenure of Gujarat assembly ends on January 22, 2018.

The grand old party is out of power in Gujarat since 1998. (ANI)

This story has not been edited. It has been published as provided by ANI