PM Narendra Modi was, per usual, the star campaigner for the BJP
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead his party's celebrations this evening at its Delhi headquarters at 6 pm. The BJP appears to have rung up its best-ever result in Gujarat, where the PM held more than 30 rallies in the final few weeks of his party's campaign. Leads by 10 am showed the BJP headed for 150 seats. That is a record result not just for the BJP but for the state; it bests the earlier landmark of 1985 when the Congress, led by Madhavsinh Solanki, won 149 seats.
The Congress, the main Opposition party in Gujarat, has been miniaturized to 20 seats, down nearly 60 from the last state election five years ago. The Aam Aadmi Party or AAP is likely to get six seats, belying the hype around the party in the PM's home state, and in defiance of an extensive campaign by its chief, Arvind Kejriwal.
The PM was, per usual, the star campaigner for the BJP. The party's seventh consecutive win in Gujarat has shattered talk of a latent anti-incumbency .
The BJP has not lost Gujarat since 1995. PM Modi was Chief Minister for 13 years before getting elected to the country's top job in 2014. In the last state election, it won 99 seats. Till today, its best result in Gujarat was when it won 127 seats in 2002.
PM Modi remains widely popular, partly due to economic growth and also because of his strong base among Hindu voters, despite critics pointing to rising inflation, unemployment and growing religious polarisation.
In Himachal Pradesh, the BJP and Congress were neck-and-neck for seats in the 68-seat assembly. The BJP has reportedly launched talks with both Congressmen in the hope of flipping them, and four Independents who are likely to win their seats.