The counting of votes began on Tuesday morning for the local body elections in Gujarat, and the saffron party, expectedly, is sweeping the polls. Early trends show that the BJP is taking a clear lead in the state's four major municipal corporations—Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, and Rajkot.
Polling was held on Sunday for elections to 15 municipal corporations, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats in the state.
The initial trend shows that the BJP has maintained a one-sided dominance with its candidates leading in most of the districts and taluka panchayats. The Aam Aadmi Party has also tried to maintain its grip by winning a few seats, while the Congress continues to struggle.
The BJP has a clear lead in Ahmedabad, the state's largest municipal Corporation. According to reports, out of the 192 seats, the BJP is leading in 21 seats so far. Meanwhile, the main opposition party, Congress, currently holds a lead in four seats. The Aam Aadmi Party has yet to open its account here.
In Surat Municipal Corporation, where there is a total of 120 seats, a three-way contest was expected between the BJP, AAP and the Congress. But the trends tell a different story. The BJP is leading with 19 seats in this 120-seat corporation. The Congress is leading in three seats, while the Aam Aadmi Party, which performed better last time, is currently leading in two. The BJP maintains a strong hold in this city, considered a diamond and textile hub.
In the Vadodara Municipal Corporation, the BJP has taken a lead in 10 of the 76 seats in the initial trends. On the other hand, the BJP is performing quite effectively in Rajkot's 72 seats, where the party is leading in 20. Congress has a lead in four seats in Rajkot, while AAP is still trailing here.
Meanwhile, Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party has won a seat in Kheda district for the first time. Another major surprise was Asaduddin Owaisi's party, AIMIM, which made a strong entry in Ward No. 1 in Bhuj, Kutch. 3 AIMIM candidates are leading in Bhuj Municipality.