BJP sweeps civic polls in Gujarat

The ruling BJP in Gujarat retained control of civic bodies after elections in six cities, including Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara, Jamnagar and Bhavnagar on Tuesday.

The ruling BJP in Gujarat retained control of civic bodies after elections in six cities, including Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara, Jamnagar and Bhavnagar on Tuesday.

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The party won 444 seats of the total of 555 in the six cities where polling was held on October 10. The BJP won 140 of the 192 setats in Ahmedabad, 95 of 114 in Surat, 61 of 75 in Vadodara, 58 of 69 in Rajkot, 35 of 57 in Jamnagar and 41 of 51 in Bhavnagar.

About 12 seats went to Independents and small parties while the Congress won about 100 seats.

Despite dissidence at the local level as more than 60 per cent of sitting councillors having been dropped by the BJP, the ruling party's performance has confirmed that it remains the first choice for governance in the state.

The BJP had made the arrest of Amit Shah, a close aide of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, by the CBI in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter an issue during the poll campaign.

Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who had campaigned in all six cities said,"The people of Gujarat have rejected the Congress-CBI alliance in the state."

The opposition Congress had focused more on local issues, saying that the corporation polls were about civic amenities and highlighted the assistance given by the Centre to the state under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission for development of infrastructure in cities.