The counting of votes for the by-election to the Vav assembly seat in Gujarat’s Banaskantha district began on Saturday morning. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Congress party are the primary contenders in the poll, which took place on November 13. The process began at 8 am at an engineering college in Jagana village, according to officials.
The office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) for Gujarat confirmed that nearly 160 election officials, along with 400 personnel from the Gujarat Police and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), have been deployed at the counting centre to ensure a smooth process. The by-poll witnessed a voter turnout of 70.55 per cent, with approximately 2.19 lakh of the 3.10 lakh registered voters casting their ballots at 321 polling stations using electronic voting machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) systems.
The Vav assembly seat became vacant following the resignation of Congress MLA Geniben Thakor, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from Banaskantha in June. The by-election has shaped up to be a three-way contest between Congress candidate and former MLA Gulabsinh Rajput, BJP’s Swaroopji Thakor and BJP rebel Mavji Patel.
Patel, 73, a member of the influential Chaudhary community, was suspended from the BJP on Sunday after deciding to contest the election as an independent candidate. Patel, a seasoned politician, previously won the Vav seat in 1990 as a Janata Dal candidate. He later joined the Congress before switching allegiance to the BJP in 2019.
In addition to the three main contenders, seven other candidates – six independents and one from the Bharatiya Jan Parishad – also participated in the by-poll. The Vav constituency, a traditional Congress stronghold, has seen repeated success for the opposition party, with Geniben Thakor winning the seat in both the 2017 and 2022 assembly elections. Notably, BJP candidate Swaroopji Thakor lost to Congress in the last assembly polls, underscoring the challenge faced by the ruling party in the region.
Also Read: Jharkhand Polls 2024: Congress, JMM, CPIML-L Lead in 1 Seat Each in ‘Too-Close-to-Call’ Contest
