Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a massive roadshow in Ahmedabad in the run-up to the Gujarat Assembly elections.
People throng on both sides of the streets through which the Prime Minister's convoy was passing. People showered flowers on his convoy. The crowd carrying his posters were chanting “Modi...Modi.." The Prime Minister was also seen greeting people and waving his hands.
After a gap of two days, Prime Minister Modi once again returned to the Gujarat election campaign trail. His three-hour-long mega roadshow is spanning across 16 assembly constituencies for the second phase of the Assembly election.
Covering over 50 kms, the roadshow started from the Naroda Gam and will be ending at Gandhinagar South constituency. PM Modi is scheduled to make at least 35 stops at the memorials of prominent personalities including Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on the way.
Thakkarbapanagar, Bapunagar, Nikol, Amraiwadi, Maninagar, Danilimbda, Jamalpur Khadia, Elisbridge, Vejalpur, Ghatlodia, Naranpur, Sabarmati are some of the constituencies that the Prime Minister is covering in his roadshow.
Interestingly, while the Prime Minister canvases for the second phase of the Gujarat election, the voting for the first phase of the Gujarat election was underway.
Modi has been Gujarat's longest-serving chief minister from 2001 to 2014.
In the 2017 Gujarat polls, Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) tally stopped at 99 seats out of a total of 182 seats. The party has been in power for the last 27 years with Narendra Modi being the state's longest-serving chief minister.
This time, the party under the leadership of PM Modi, Amit Shah and CR Paatil is aiming at getting its highest seat tally exceeding 140.
The state has been a BJP stronghold for a long and the party has set its sights on returning to power for the seventh term.
Meanwhile, the voting for the first phase of the two-phased Gujarat Assembly polls concluded on Thursday at 5 pm with a total voter turnout of 56.75 per cent. The polling is taking place in 89 constituencies spread across 19 districts of Kutch, Saurashtra and South Gujarat.
BJP chief ministerial candidate Bhupendra Patel contested from the Ghatlodia seat. Among prominent candidates, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief ministerial candidate Isudan Gadhvi contested from Khambhaliya, former Congress leader and BJP candidate Hardik Patel from Viramgam, former Congress leader and now BJP candidate Alpesh Thakor from Gandhinagar South.
AAP state president Gopal Italia contested from Katargam constituency, Gujarat Home Minister (State) Harsh Sanghavi from Majura, Rivaba Jadeja from Jamnagar North, former Gujarat minister Parshottam Solanki from Bhavnagar Rural, Kunwarji Bavaliya from Jasdan, Kantilal Amrutiya from Morbi and Jayesh Radadiya from Jetpur.
The second phase of the Gujarat election would be held on December 5.
The counting of votes will be done on December 8. Results of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections will also be declared on the same day.
(with inputs from ANI)
