BJP's Kunvarji Bavalia wins Jasdan assembly seat

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Kunvarji Bavalia has won the Jasdan assembly bypoll by defeating Congress' Avsar Nakiya by 19, 985 votes.

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said that the victory in Jasdan is a clear indication that BJP will win all 26 seats in Gujarat in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

"This victory is a clear indication that BJP will win 26 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Gujarat under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. People of Gujarat are with BJP and they are prepared to make Narendra Modi the Prime Minister again," Rupani told ANI.

Bavalia bagged 90,268 votes, while Congress' Avsar Nakiya secured 70, 283 votes.

Nakiya, a Rajkot district Panchayat member who had once worked closely with Bavalia, contested the assembly election for the first time.

The result of the assembly by-poll, which was declared today, was keenly watched by the Congress and the ruling BJP as it is being touted as a testing phase ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

It may be noted that the BJP recently conceded defeat to the Congress in three states - Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh.

Jasdan constituency has 2.32 lakh registered voters. The by-poll in the region was necessitated after the sitting MLA, Bavalia, left the Congress party to join the BJP.