While the News Nation and Today’s Chanakya-News 24 polls predicted the BJP getting a mean of 120 and 135 seats respectively in 182-member Assembly, the Aaj Tak-Axis exit poll said the BJP would get 99-113 seats and the Congress 68-82.The polls also predicted a complete sweep for the BJP in Himachal Pradesh. AAP questioned these polls. Here’s a political analysis by Navodita, our Executive Editor, in the weekly column, exclusively in Different Truths.
As voting got over in the state of Gujarat on Thursday, everyone is eagerly waiting for the results of elections in both the states – Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. As far as Gujarat is concerned various exit polls predicted BJP victory, although the AAP questioned these.
Aam Admi Party spokesperson Sanjay Singh told the media in Lucknow, “There were massive crowds at 
rallies of Patidar leader Hardik Patel. BJP workers were booed at many rallies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s public rallies were thinly attended. Still, if the Bharatiya Janata Party wins, it has managed to manipulate the EVMs.”
Sanjay also slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party government and said there were chaos and lawlessness in the state and that sectors like power, law and order, education and health were in tatters. He alleged that a cancer patient was gang-raped in the heart of the city, six-year-olds were raped, while the policeman is beaten up by BJP cadres and officials are arm-twisted by the ruling party workers.
He said the BJP had lost popular support as depicted by the civic body elections, wherein of the 12, 000 municipal seats, independents won over 8000. He claimed that the AAP was fast emerging as an alternative to BJP, SP and the BSP in Uttar Pradesh, as was evident by its decent performance in the urban body polls. Although AAP seemed out of the contest in these legislative assembly elections, it stuck to its poll promise of welfare and public interest as a model of governance if it manages to win any seats.
Notwithstanding the Patidar agitation and the concerns over the GST implementation, all polls showed the BJP romping home in Gujarat. While the News Nation and Today’s Chanakya-News 24 polls predicted the BJP getting a mean of 120 and 135 seats respectively in 182-member Assembly, the Aaj Tak-Axis exit poll said the BJP would get 99-113 seats and the Congress 68-82.The polls also predicted a complete sweep for the BJP in Himachal Pradesh. The surveys showed the BJP winning upwards of 42 seats in the 68 member Assembly with the Congress getting between 13 and 23 seats.
In an unprecedented attack on the Election Commission of India, the Congress described it as a ‘captive puppet’ of the BJP and accused it of ‘denigrating the Constitution by not issuing a notice to Prime Minister Modi.’ Members of the women and youth wing also protested outside the Commission for what it called ‘the Commission’s refusal to act against BJP leaders and Ministers.’
Addressing a press conference, former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who oversaw the Congress’ campaign, and the party’s communication chief spokesperson, Randeep Singh Sujrewala, alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi violated the model code of conduct by holding a roadshow after voting in the Gujarat Assembly polls, but the Commission refused to take note.
In a series of tweets, former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said: “Allowing a roadshow of PM on voting day is a gross violation of the code of conduct. It is an election campaign. What is the EC doing? The images on TV will leave no one in doubt that the BJP and PM have conducted a full-fledged campaign on polling day. Shocking violation of rules. EC is sleeping on the job.”
“Let the media look at the images on the TV screens, search its conscience and reach a conclusion. There has not been a more blatant violation of the code of conduct on polling day. Stand up media to this unprecedented violation of the code of conduct. Condemn the EC for allowing this gross abuse,” Chidambaram said.
The Congress criticism comes a day after the Commission issued a notice to Rahul Gandhi for violating the model code of conduct by giving interviews to TV channels and asked FIRs to be registered against channels that aired it. The EC refused to comment on any such allegation made by the Congress.
Meanwhile, Congress president Rahul Gandhi exuded confidence that his party will win the Gujarat election. Gandhi, who had arrived in Kerala after a hectic campaign in Gujarat, says he had tested the 
strength of the BJP in Gujarat and found its foundations to be ‘extremely weak.’ He said he had arrived in Gujarat with the notion that the BJP had done some excellent work there and was on firm ground. However, his interactions with farmers, small businesspeople in Surat, and factory workers proved it wrong. He added that only 15 to 20 large corporate entities had benefitted. Farmers, women, and labourers were forgotten. Public healthcare and education are in shambles.
The Gujarat verdict will prove to be a litmus test for both parties- for the BJP will the ‘Modi magic’ work and for the Congress, the big question will be whether the new party president has provided good leadership. If Modi loses Gujarat, it will mean the crumbling of the ‘Gujarat model’ narrative and will hit his ‘vikas purush’ image he has managed to garner support for in the past. While for the Congress it seems to be a good ‘morale-boosting’ fight in decades, if not completely winning the battle.
©Navodita Pande
Photos from the Internet
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