◆Gujarat Assembly Election: BJP closes out with 99 seats; Congress claims 77
【Ahmadabad】The BJP is set to form a new government in Gujarat by bagging 99 seats in the two-phase 182-member Assembly polls.
This will be the sixth straight term for the BJP in the State. But the spirited campaign by Rahul Gandhi has not gone in vain. The Congress managed to get 77 seats and BJP has got a reduced majority.
The elections have catapulted young leaders in the State — Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani, OBC (Other Backward Classes) leader Alpesh Thakor and Patidar leader Hardik Patel — from social activism to politics. An average 68.41 per cent polling was recorded in the two-phase polls.
The new BJP government in Gujarat is likely to be sworn in on December 25, party sources said today amid speculation that a new leader could be chosen to helm the state where it secured a narrow victory in the Assembly polls.