Gujarat Lok Sabha elections 2024: It’s BJP vs Congress-AAP alliance

2024 Lok Sabha Election in Gujarat.

Gujarat goes to the polls during the third phase of the general elections on May 7. The home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah, the elections in Gujarat are a faceoff between Bharatiya Janata Party led by Amit Shah which is contesting all 26 seats and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance comprising of the Indian National Congress contesting 24 seats and the Aam Aadmi Party fielding candidates in 2 seats.

The All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has announced that it will be contesting in two constituencies- Bharuch and Gandhinagar.

In the Lok Sabha elections of 2019 and 2014 the BJP made a clean sweep, winning all 26 constituency seats. The 2009 general elections were the last time the Indian National Congress had tasted victory in Gujarat, when it had won 11 of the 26 seats.

The BJP has dominated the political landscape in Gujarat over the past decade but the opposition is hopeful that after winning all seats in the Lok Sabha, for two consecutive terms, the party may face an anti-incumbency sentiment.

Also check: Karnataka 2024 Lok Sabha election phase 3: Key constituencies and candidates

While the opposition is basing their hopes on the newly formed alliance and a shifting in voter sentiments, the 2022 Gujarat Assembly Elections presented a different reality where the BJP had won 156 seats- the most ever by a party. The opposition forming an alliance seems to be a result of the debacle of the 2022 assembly elections where the anti-BJP votes were divided between the AAP and the Congress resulting in the BJP’s landslide victory. This time, the Congress and AAP are focusing on winning in the tribal dominated seats of Gujarat, mainly Dahod, Chhota Udaipur, Bardoli, and Valsad which are reserved for Scheduled Tribes and Bharuch, which though a general category seat, has a significant tribal population.

While the final colour of the state will only be evident on 4 June 2024, analysts opine that a slew of government schemes coupled with grassroot level outreach programs by the BJP and the RSS are contributing to a pro-BJP sentiment.