A BLIP CALLED BANASKANTHA

The north Gujarat constituency played spoiler in the BJP's hat-trick of a perfect score. The party must also guard against voter fatigue

- Jumana Shah

The BJP maintained its dominance in Gujarat on expected lines, albeit with a loss in one seat—Banaskantha—in north Gujarat. Not the ideal outcome for a party that strives for perfection in the prime minister and home minister’s home state, a script that had been unwavering in the past two elections, when the BJP won all 26 seats. Assured of that unassailability, the ruling party had set an even more ambitious target—to win each seat by 500,000 votes.