ADVERTISEMENTREMOVE AD

Gujarat Polls: Congress' Jignesh Mevani Wins Vadgam, Close Fight Against BJP

Mevani has retained Vadgam with a lean margin of 4,928 votes

Published
story-hero-img
i
Aa
Aa
Small
Aa
Medium
Aa
Large
Hindi Female

With counting still underway in Gujarat Assembly elections on Thursday, 8 December, former independent MLA and Congress candidate Jignesh Mevani retained his seat in Vadgam.

The leader managed to bag a total of 94,765 votes with a vote share 48 per cent.

The Dalit leader won by a margin of 4,922 votes, beating Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Manibhai Jethabhai Vaghela, who garnered 89,837 votes. AAP candidate Dalpat Bhatia had also contested the seat.

Why is this significant? The Vadgam constituency in the Banaskantha district is a seat reserved for people belonging to the Scheduled Castes (SC), and holds a largely Dalit and Muslim population. The electorate also includes people belonging to the Thakor, Darbar, and Chaudhary communities.

ADVERTISEMENTREMOVE AD

What was the verdict in 2017? Mevani, supported by the Congress, won the seat on an Independent ticket during the 2017 Assembly elections. Independents won only three seats that year.

Mevani had then unseated Vaghela, who served as the Congress MLA from the seat from 2012 to 2017. On 24 April this year, Congress leader Manilal Vaghela joined the BJP.

In 2017, he was denied a ticket after the party decided to not field a candidate and instead support Mevani.

(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)

0

Read Latest News and Breaking News at The Quint, browse for more from elections and gujarat-election

Topics:  Aam Aadmi Party   Congress   Jignesh Mevani 

Speaking truth to power requires allies like you.
Become a Member
3 months
12 months
12 months
Check Member Benefits
Read More
×
×