Cong must admit Guj rout, stop claiming victory in defeat: BJP

The Gujarat BJP today said the Congress must concede its defeat in the just-concluded polls in the state because voters gave a "clear cut" mandate to the ruling party to form the next government.

The BJP's statement came in the wake of assertions by Congress leaders that their party has recorded a moral victory in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi yesterday said the Gujarat election results were a "zabardast jhatka" (a massive jolt) to the BJP, which narrowly won the polls.

Gujarat BJP president Jitu Vaghani said the opposition party must admit defeat in the state polls, which saw the BJP winning 99 seats in the 182-member assembly, down from 115 in 2012, and the Congress bagging 77, a gain of 16 seats.
 

Vaghani accused Congress leaders of trying to protect their newly elected president by only projecting the rise in seats and not highlighting defeat, both in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.

"While fighting the election in Gujarat, the Congress did not say they want to be in the opposition after the polls. They used to say that entire Gujarat is unhappy (with the BJP) and people were impressed with Rahul Gandhi. Now, when they lost, they must admit their defeat," he told reporters here.

Referring to the Congress' defeat in Himachal Pradesh, where the BJP has come to power, he said, "The Congress just cannot win (polls). Neither in states where they were in power nor where they were in the opposition."

"We will be forming the government here for the sixth consecutive term. Though the Congress tried to lure voters through promises which can never be implemented, people gave us a clear cut mandate. The people of Gujarat are smart and did not fall prey to Congress tactics," he added.

"To save Rahul Gandhi, the Congress does not even talk about their defeat in Himachal Pradesh, where the BJP took the reins from them.

"In Gujarat, too, the Congress talks only about the number of seats they won. This is their tactic to help Rahul escape responsibility for the party's defeat," he said.

Vaghani exuded confidence the BJP would do well in Gujarat during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.