Rajkot: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) retained control of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC), winning 65 of the 72 seats across the city’s 18 wards, with results declared on Tuesday.Though the BJP secured a comfortable majority, its tally dipped marginally from the 2021 elections, conceding three seats to the Congress. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) failed to open its account in the RMC. The Congress registered its most significant gain in Ward 16, sweeping all four seats and defeating the entire BJP panel. The ward includes the Jangleshwar area, which saw a major demolition drive by the civic body shortly before the elections, suggesting a possible voter backlash. In 2021, the Congress had won all four seats in Ward 15; this time it secured three there but compensated by taking all four seats in Ward 16. The outcome marked the BJP’s fifth consecutive victory in the RMC since 2005, reinforcing Rajkot’s status as a BJP stronghold. The party also consolidated its position in areas merged into the city limits in 2020, including Madhapar, Manharpar, Ghanteshwar and Munjka. Its campaign focused on development, highlighting projects such as Atal Sarovar and the rollout of basic infrastructure — roads, drainage and water pipelines — in the newly added areas. Sources said that even high-profile incidents such as the TRP Game Zone fire, which drew national attention and exposed alleged corruption within municipal corporations, did not dent support for the ruling party, with voters continuing to back the BJP. The total electorate stood at 9.85 lakh, down from over 10 lakh in the previous poll, following the Special Intensive Revision carried out by the election commission. AAP opens account in Jamnagar In the Jamnagar Municipal Corporation (JMC) elections, the Aam Aadmi Party managed to open its account. In Ward 12, the Congress and AAP won two seats each, in the 64-member civic body. The BJP scored a notable victory by winning all four seats in Ward 1, wresting the ward from the Congress. Credit for the sweep was attributed to Rivaba Jadeja, wife of cricketer Ravindra Jadeja. Ward 1 falls within the Jamnagar North Assembly constituency, which Rivaba represents after winning her first election in 2022.
