The BJP has retained control of the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation in Gujarat, winning 38 of the 44 seats in the civic body elections. The Congress won five seats, while an Independent candidate secured one. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which had won a seat in the previous election, failed to open its account this time.
The results reaffirm the BJP's dominance in the state capital's civic body, although its seat tally has declined from the 41 seats it won in the October 2021 election. The Congress, which had secured two seats last time, improved its tally to five.
Counting of votes for the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation elections began at 9 am on Tuesday, following polling held on Sunday using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
The election covered all 44 seats across 11 wards, with 130 candidates in the fray. The civic body has around 2.59 lakh voters.
In the previous election in October 2021, the BJP won 41 seats, while the Congress secured two and the AAP won one. The BJP has governed the Gandhinagar civic body for the past five years.
THARA, OKHA MUNICIPALITY POLLS ALSO UNDERWAY
Besides Gandhinagar, counting is underway for the Thara and Okha municipality elections, along with bypolls for municipal seats and various district and taluka panchayats across Gujarat.
In Okha municipality in Devbhumi Dwarka district, counting is being held for 32 seats across nine wards. Four seats had already been won unopposed, while 75 candidates contested the remaining seats.
In Thara municipality in Banaskantha district, votes are being counted for 24 seats across six wards, with 59 candidates in the fray.
Bypolls are also being counted for one seat each in the Kheralu, Chhota Udepur and Bayad municipalities, besides seats in various district and taluka panchayats.
GANDHINAGAR RECORDS 59.25% VOTER TURNOUT
According to figures released by the State Election Commission, voter turnout stood at 59.25 per cent in Gandhinagar, 81.18 per cent in Thara and 63.27 per cent in Okha.
Joint Commissioner of the State Election Commission N K Damor said after polling that voting had been held peacefully.
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With PTI inputs