Gujarat Assembly elections 2012: BJP worried about low voter turnout

Gujarat Assembly elections 2012: BJP worried about low voter turnout

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat BJP leadership is a worried lot. In 2002 and 2007, Narendra Modi had secured thumping majority with emotional issues like communalism and terrorism resulting in voters coming out to cast their ballot in large numbers. Bu things may not be the same this time around. 

According to the Times of India, the Bhartiya Janata Party is worried that in the absence of any big emotive issue in the upcoming Assembly elections in Gujarat, the polling may dip. The reason is that as per past records, a higher voter turnout was instrumental in BJP getting more seats. On the other hand the Congress did well when the polling was low. The Congress won 149 seats in 1985 when the polling was 48.82%. In 1980, it bagged 141 seats when the voting was 48.37%. 

Since then, the voting percentage in Assembly polls has risen in state over the years and it has coincided with a rise in BJP's tally too. The saffron party won 121 seats in 1995 when the voter turnout was 64.39%, 117 in 1998 (59.30%), 127 in 2002 (61.54%) and 117 in 2007 (59.77%), as per TOI.

Chief Minister and star campaigner Narendra Modi has been campaigning relentlessly in his state in the build up to the polls. At the same time he has also been exhorting his party cadres to make sure that voters come out in large numbers on the D-day.