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Gujarat set for final round of polling
Sunday December 16, 2012 09:22:22 PM,
IANS
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Ahmedabad: Gujarat is
set for Monday's second and final round of polling to decide if
Chief Minister Narendra Modi can get another five-year term or the
Congress can bounce back to power in the state assembly.
An estimated 19.8 million voters are eligible to take part in the
nine-hour balloting in 95 of the 182 constituencies. Voting took
place in the first round Thursday in 87 constituencies.
Both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress have
interpreted the heavy polling in the first phase to claim they
were poised to win the Gujarat battle for ballot.
The regions going to the polls include Kutch, north Gujarat and
central Gujarat.
"More than 70 percent will vote in this phase too," asserted BJP
Rajya Sabha member Natuji Thakor. "North Gujarat is Narendrabhai's
(Modi) area. He is the son of the soil. People will vote
overwhelmingly for him and the BJP."
He added: "We are expecting more votes in central Gujarat than
last time."
Senior Congress leader Shaktisinh Gohil was equally confident.
"I think we will see a heavy turnout in this phase as well," Gohil
told IANS. "People will vote in favour of the Congress, given the
anti-incumbency."
The BJP is contesting all 95 seats, the Congress 92 and the
Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP) of former BJP chief minister
Keshubhai Patel 84.
Also in the fray are 84 candidates of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)
and 284 Independents. A total of 49 women candidates are also in
the fray.
There are 10.3 million male and 9.5 million female voters.
Himmatnagar in Sabarkantha district has the maximum number of 18
candidates while Fatepura in Dahod district has just three -- the
least number.
The Election Commission said 23,318 electronic voting machines
will be used in as many polling stations, with 10,126 of them
dubbed "critical" -- an official euphemism to mean they could
witness disturbances or violence.
Abdasa is the largest assembly constituency (area wise) with 6,278
sq km territory and Ghatlodia has the most number of voters
(285,998).
Among the constituencies that will see polling Monday are
Ellisbridge, where slain BJP leader Haren Pandya's widow Jagruti
is contesting against the BJP, and Naranpura, where Modi's
confidant Amit Shah, a former minister, is a candidate.
The millions of votes cast in the Gujarat election -- along with
those of Himachal Pradesh -- will be counted Dec 20.
If the BJP wins, Modi -- who soars over the party and who has been
chief minister since 2001 -- could start playing a larger national
role both in the BJP and pan-India politics.
A defeat for the BJP could, however, puncture Modi's larger
political ambitions and prove a great morale booster for the
Congress ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election.
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