Even after Morbi tragedy, BJP wins the assembly seat by over 61,000 votes

Morbi, Dec 08: BJP candidate Kantilal Amrutiya has won the Morbi seat which was in the news last month after a bridge collapse which claimed 135 lives.

As per the trends, he won the seat by over 61,000 votes over Congress rival Jaynatilal Patel, who secured over 52,000 votes while Aam Aadmi Party's candidate Pankaj Ransariya is in the third spot with 17,000+ votes.

It has to be noted that Amtrutiya had become a saviour in the bridge collapse tragedy and videos of Amrutiya jumping into the river to rescue survivors had gone viral. This gesture had won nationwide praise for him and the sobriquet of "Morbi hero", according to a report in PTI.

Earlier, Amrutiya had won from the Morbi segment five times in the past and Jayantilal Patel lost five times to BJP rivals in the previous polls. The contest turned triangular this time with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) fielding Pankaj Ransariya, also a Patidar, but he failed to woo voters.

Dominated by Patidar voters, Morbi has been considered a traditional stronghold of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The place hogged national limelight after the British-era suspension bridge in the city collapsed into the Machchhu river on October 30 that took the lives of 135 people. Pollsters had predicted that this incident might have some impact on the outcome of election results.

The saffron party is quick to drop the sitting MLA Brijesh Merja as it sensed the popularity of Amrutiya, who was otherwise not in the reckoning as a candidate.

On the other hand, the BJP has registered a landslide victory in the state and retain power for a record seventh straight term. Banking on the charisma of Modi, who addressed as many as 30 election rallies, the saffron party overcame anti-incumbency yet again after being in power for 25 years without losing an election since 1995.

The win here will make it the only party other than the Communist Party of India (Marxist) to have emerged victorious in seven straight assembly polls.

With inputs from PTI