BJP wins zila parishad, samiti polls in 20 districts
The ruling Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) put up its best performance in a decade in the zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections by emerging victorious in 20 districts. In the past, the BJP recorded its highest tally in 2005, when it won a majority in 13 districts.
The ruling Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) put up its best performance in a decade in the zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections by emerging victorious in 20 districts.
It is expected to bag two more districts, for which counting of votes was on till late on Friday night while the party was stuck in a tie with Congress in Jhunjhunu.
In the past, the BJP recorded its highest tally in 2005, when it won a majority in 13 districts.
In 2000, the party had a majority in 10 districts, and in 2010, it formed the panel in only eight districts while the Congress bagged 24 districts.
The latest trends showed the BJP was set for a majority in Alwar and Udaipur districts though Bharatpur was going out of its hands. In Jhunjhunu, the BJP and Congress both secured 17 seats each while one was bagged by an independent.
In panchayat samitis too, the BJP was ahead of the opposition Congress by bagging 2,977 of the total of 6,236 seats. The Congress trailed with 2,505 seats while independent candidates bagged 566 seats.
“We are hopeful of emerging victorious in 23-24 districts. This would be the best performance of the party in rural polls, where Congress has been ruling for so many years” said state BJP president Ashok Parnami.
The biggest jolt to the BJP came from Kota, considered a bastion of the party and a base of RSS cadres. Here, the BJP lost to Congress by just three seats. However, the Congress is worried about cross-voting in favour of the BJP when the heads of zila parishads and panchayat samitis are elected on Saturday.
