Gandhinagar, April 28 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has recorded a sweeping victory across Gujarat in the local self-government elections, retaining control of all 15 municipal corporations and securing an overwhelming majority across municipalities and panchayats, according to results declared on Tuesday.​

Polling was held for 15 municipal corporations, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats. Even before counting began, the BJP had won 732 of the 10,005 seats unopposed.​

Final results showed the party winning 78 municipalities, while the Congress secured six.​

At the district level, the BJP formed governments in 33 of 34 district panchayats, and at the taluka level it won 253 of 260 bodies, with the remaining going to Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).​

The only district panchayat not won by the BJP was Narmada, where AAP secured 15 of 22 seats against the BJP’s seven.​

AAP also registered a milestone in Amreli district by winning the Bagasara taluka panchayat, marking its first control of a panchayat body.​

In municipal corporations, the BJP retained all 15 bodies with large margins. In Surat, it won 115 of 120 seats, while AAP’s tally fell from 27 in 2021 to 4, and Congress secured 1.​

In Ahmedabad, polling was conducted for 192 seats across 48 wards, with two seats—Vasna and Thaltej—won unopposed by the BJP.​

The party contested 190 seats and secured a clear majority with 160 seats, continuing its control of the civic body it has held since 2005.​

Congress contested 185 seats, AAP fielded 151 candidates, and 877 nominations were rejected, with 22 candidates withdrawing.​

Across other cities, the BJP secured 65 of 72 seats in Rajkot, 55 of 58 in Vadodara and 60 of 64 in Jamnagar. It also won 41 of 52 seats in Gandhidham and 47 of 52 in Mehsana.​

The party nearly swept Surendranagar and Nadiad, winning 51 of 52 seats in each, and achieved complete victories in Morbi and Porbandar, winning all 52 seats in both corporations.​

Further wins included Bhavnagar (44 of 52), Navsari (50 of 52), Vapi (37 of 52) and Karamsad-Anand (43 of 52). At the district panchayat level, the BJP dominated key regions.​

In Kachchh, it won 30 of 38 seats, while Congress secured four. In Banaskantha, the BJP won 32 seats against Congress’s 16. In Mehsana, it secured 38 of 42 seats, including three unopposed.​

In the Ahmedabad district, the BJP won 32 of 34 seats, while Congress took two. In the Rajkot and Surat districts, the BJP won 34 of 36 and 35 of 36 seats, respectively.​

In districts such as Surendranagar, Porbandar, Amreli and Kheda, the party either swept or faced limited opposition.​

Congress registered scattered gains in districts including Banaskantha, Patan and Tapi, while independents and other parties had a minimal presence.​

Overall voter turnout stood at 57.13 per cent despite high temperatures. Turnout was 49.02 per cent in municipal corporations and 59.50 per cent in municipalities.​

Rural areas recorded higher participation, with 61.69 per cent turnout in district panchayats and 62.38 per cent in taluka panchayats.​

The results broadly mirror the 2021 local polls, when the BJP had secured all municipal corporations and consolidated its position in urban centres, while AAP emerged as a third-party contender.​

In the latest elections, AAP’s urban presence declined sharply even as it made limited gains in select rural pockets.​

Overall, the BJP secured 7,491 seats, while the Congress won 1,740, and other parties and others counted for 755 seats.​

The BJP attributed its performance to extensive organisational planning led by state president Jagdish Vishwakarma, focusing on door-to-door outreach, group meetings and booth-level management across districts and talukas.​

With control across municipal corporations, municipalities and the vast majority of district and taluka panchayats, the BJP has reinforced its dominance across all tiers of local governance in Gujarat following the latest electoral exercise.​

–IANS

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