BJP bounces back with Gujarat win after series of losses

AHMEDABAD: The bypoll results came after a series of setbacks the state BJP faced in Gujarat in the last four months. The party got a drubbing in the July 2009 Junagadh municipal corporation elections, where its experiment of fielding a Muslim candidate backfired. The party lost by four seats to Congress in the 51-member civic body.

Later, BJP lost out in the race for two prime district cooperative banks, Kheda and Bhavnagar. Last month, the state BJP lost the all important elections of Amul Dairy, a traditional Congress bastion since its inception. The losses led to a belief that the party was losing its hold in the state. However, Monday���s sweep in the bypolls came as a booster for the party.

So much so that chief minister Narendra Modi, who did not campaign for the bypolls, addressed a victory rally in Danta in Banaskantha district on Monday. Expectedly, Mr Modi said the election was a pointer to the state elections in Maharashtra.

���The results of the bypolls show that BJP still remains a preferred choice of the people of Gujarat,��� BJP general secretary Jayanti Barot said. BJP���s candidate from Sami constituency Bhavsinh Rathod, who earlier quit Congress as sitting MLA and fought LS poll on BJP ticket only to lose later, won the bypoll.