Gujarat Assembly Elections 2017: Congress Lost Kutiyana Seat in Porbandar Thrice. Can The Party Win BJP’s Citadel This Time? - JPKee.com

Ahmedabad, Nov 24: In his bid to secure victory in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)  chief Amit Shah, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi is holding incessant rallies in Gujarat ahead of the upcoming state assembly elections. The Congress scion on Friday campaigned in the port town of Porbandar. Launching a scathing attack on the Union Government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi alleged that the government has given a benefit of Rs 33,000 crore to Tata Motors for their ‘Nano Project’.

Challenges for Congress

Despite its strong influence in the Saurashtra region, the grand old party has failed to win the constituency three times in a row since 2002. The arch-rival BJP not only won the single seat of Kutiyana in the Porbandar district thrice but it also increased its vote share significantly. Election Commission data suggests that the BJP increased its vote share from 45.49 per cent in 2007 assembly elections to 53.17 per cent in 2012 assembly elections.

The saffron party’s candidate Odedara Karshanbhai Dulabhai won the seat twice but it decided to field Babubhai Bhimabhai Bokhiria in last elections. The change of candidate increased BJP’s vote by 10 per cent.

Will Dalits Pick Congress Now?

Dalits form an important segment of voters in the entire Saurashtra region. Dalits were enraged after four persons were flocked publicly for skinning a dead cow in Una earlier this year. The incident sparked a series of protests in the region. Young Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani had also said he will appeal the Dalit community to not cast their votes in favour of Bharatiya Janata Party.

“Since Una (incident), we launched numerous agitations and submitted memorandums. Despite this, the thick-skinned BJP government, which is not only anti-Dalit but also anti-people, has not considered even one demand of our community. They have not even bothered to even to talk to us,” Mevani said.

2012 Assembly Election

In 2012 Gujarat Assembly Elections, the Congress won 57 out of 182 seats and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered victory on 119 seats. The Congress was left with only 43 MLAs after over a dozen of them defected earlier this year.

The Congress, which has been out of power in the key western state for over 22 years now, has been trying hard to increase its tally in the state.

The last date of filing nominations for the first phase of polls in Gujarat is November 21. Voting for the first phase will be held on December 9 while the second phase will go to polls on December 14. The counting of votes will take place on December 18.

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Author - Vikash Kumar