Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India]: Gujarat Congress President Shaktisinh Gohil announced on Friday that the Congress party will contest the upcoming Visavadar and Kadi Assembly by-elections independently, without any alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is part of the INDIA bloc.
Gohil explained that this decision was taken after careful analysis of past electoral trends in the state. “Gujaratis have never voted for a third front. Here, it is either Congress or the BJP,” he said, highlighting that Congress remains the main opposition party in the state.
He further elaborated, “During the last elections, the AAP tried its best, with all their big leaders campaigning for the party. However, they could only garner 10.5-11 percent of the votes, which ultimately damaged the Congress party’s prospects.”
Gohil emphasized that Congress intends to fight the elections in both seats. “To defeat the BJP, the main opposition party is Congress… We urge the AAP to withdraw their candidates for the upcoming Visavadar and Kadi by-elections,” he said.
However, he clarified that the Congress and AAP will continue their alliance at the national level through the INDIA bloc. “On a national level, we are all part of the INDIA alliance, and we are one,” he added.
The Visavadar seat in Junagadh district has remained vacant since December 2023 after AAP MLA Bhupendra Bhayani resigned and joined the BJP. Meanwhile, the Kadi seat in Mehsana, reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates, became vacant following the death of BJP MLA Karsan Solanki on February 4.
The Election Commission has yet to announce the dates for the bypolls.
This announcement comes after Congress’s AICC session in Gujarat on April 8-9, where the party signalled its intent to win back power in the state, having been out of power for the last three decades. The Congress also reaffirmed its claim to the legacy of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Mahatma Gandhi, both of whom hailed from Gujarat.