Gujarat Assembly polls | Campaigning at its peak as State plays host to top leaders

While Modi and Shah lead the BJP campaign, Congress and AAP bring in their heavyweights too, with just a couple of days to the first round of polling

With Gujarat set to face the first round of polling on December 1, the State is home to some intensified campaigning, playing host to top leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

On Monday, the Prime Minister held rallies in Jamnagar and Palitana in Saurashtra and held meetings with Surat’s businessmen and diamond factory owners. The meeting assumed significance as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has trained its focus on a few Patidar-dominated seats in Surat city, challenging the BJP’s hold.

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On Sunday, too, the PM had a 27-km-long roadshow that culminated in a huge rally at Varachha Road, a constituency where the AAP has fielded a former Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) leader Alpesh Kathiriya.

The Prime Minister, in his speech in Palitana and Jamnagar, continued to attack the Congress while exhorting the public to vote for the BJP to continue the development works the State government has initiated. He alleged that the erstwhile Congress government had stopped armed forces from taking action against terrorism due to the party’s vote bank politics, a charge he made in his poll speeches on Sunday as well.

Campaigning for the first phase of the election will end on Tuesday evening. As many as 89 seats of Saurashtra and South Gujarat region will go for voting in the first phase.

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