Saffron surge continues as BJP set to retain Gujarat and win Himachal Pradesh

NEW DELHI: BJP has won both Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh with a comfortable majority with BJP leading in over 100 seats in Gujarat and over 40 seats in Himachal Pradesh as per latest leads from Election Commission of India.

92 is the magic mark in Gujarat and 34 is the magic mark in Himachal Pradesh. Congress and its allies were leading in 77 seats, as per the ECI which is the highest tally for the Congress in the last two decades in Gujarat following a spirited campaign by the new Congress President Rahul Gandhi. Congress was ahead in 22 seats in Himachal Pradesh till last leads came in.

While Congress was able to increase its vote share in Gujarat to almost 42%, it was able to increase its seats only by 15 which was not enough to dislodge the BJP.


Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who flashed the victory sign while entering Parliament, had done a whirlwind campaign in Gujarat including riding a sea plane from the Sabarmati river front in Ahmedabad.

BJP President Amit Shah had aimed for a target of 150 seats in Gujarat but BJP has dropped from its last tally of 115 seats to about 102-105 seats, as per latest leads available from the ECI. Congress has done well in the Shaurastra region but BJP managed to hold on to its other strongholds in North Gujarat to manage a majority in Gujarat.