Congress fielded six Muslim candidates, while the AIMIM gave tickets to three members of the minority community . The AIMIM failed to win a single seat and the AAP could have won just five .
Ahmedabad, Dec. 2: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM seem to have jeopardized the Congress' sway over minority votes in Gujarat in the Assembly polls, breaking the main Opposition party's vote margin in various seats across the state, especially after the 2002 Godhra riots, according to Congress figures.However, the AAP and the Hyderabad-headquartered All India The Congress fielded six Muslim candidates, while the AIMIM under Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP gave tickets to three members of the minority community, but they failed to win a single seat and the AAP could have won just five, but they destabilized the Congress's chances and vote share in many seats by splitting their traditional votes.Gyasuddin Shaikh, a sitting Congress MLA, lost by a margin of 5,243 votes to BJPs Shaikh received 55,847 votes, compared to his nearest BJP rival, who had 61,090 votes.The AAP and AIMIM candidates captured the top prize, respectively, with 4,164 and 1,771 votes in Jamalpur-Khadia, with Imran Khedawala receiving a third term in a row, but with a reduced mandate of 58,487 votes, down from 75,000 in 2017.
The AAP and Samajwadi Party (SP) Muslim candidates made up the difference between the Congress and the BJP in terms of difference.In the Mangrol seat, two-time sitting Congress MLA Babubhai Vaja lost by 22,501 votes to BJPs Kargatiya Lakhabhai.Despite the AAP and the AIMIM cutting into its votes and the BJP fighting a close fight, the Congress dominated the Muslim and Dalit-dominated Danilimda Assembly segment in Ahmedabad.Shailesh Parmar, the sitting Congress MLA, won by a margin of 13,525 votes over his nearest rival, BJPs Nareshbhai Vyas. Soma Kapadia of the AAP won 22,934 votes, while AIMIM candidate Kaushika Parmar won 2,464.Although Parmar won, his victory margin was much lower than in 2012 and 2017.In the Godhra seat, BJPs C K Raulji defeated Congressman Rashmitaben Chauhan by 35,198 votes.Raulji earned 96,223 votes, while Chauhan earned 612,055. Rajeshbhai Patel of the Aam Aadmi Party secured 11,827 votes, while AIMIMs Hasan Kachaba earned 9,508 votes, erasing Congress traditional votes in the communally vulnerable Assembly seat of Godhra, where the burning of an express train triggered state-wide communal riots 20 years earlier.Sangita Patil, a BJP MLA, won Pankaj Tayede, Aam Aadmi Parties Pankaj Tayede, defeated her closest competitor by a margin of 58,009 votes.Mr Patil received 95,696 votes relative to 37,687 votes in favour of Tayede, the AAP elbowed out the Congress, the traditional main opposition in this seat, to a distant third position.Congress candidate Gopalbhai Patil came in third place with 29,436, while the AIMIM was a distant fourth with 5,216 votes, according to political analysts. Political analyst Dilip Gohil said that the Congress lost interest in the whole election.According to political analyst Hemant Shah, the poll results show that people who were looking for an alternative have found the AAP as a replacement of the Congress.The Congress might have climbed to the second position, but they have lost the perception race to the AAP.This would be politically fatal to the Congress, who would find it difficult to rebuild themselves, he said.Featured Video Of The DayOn The Day: The BJP sets a record, while the Congress wins in Himalayan.