BJP holds Manjalpur seat as Satish Patel wins by 30,000 votes
In the July 30 by-election for Gujarat's Manjalpur constituency, BJP candidate Satish Patel defeated Congress nominee Bhikhabhai Rabari by more than 30,000 votes.
The Manjalpur assembly seat in Vadodara district was contested on July 30 following the passing of senior BJP legislator Yogesh Patel. Former municipal councillor Satish Govindbhai Patel ran for the BJP, while the Congress fielded its Gujarat vice-president and ex-minister Bhikhabhai Rabari. After 20 rounds of counting at Bhavan's School in Makarpura, Patel emerged with 55,481 votes against Rabari's 24,851, a margin of 30,630.
Voter participation stood at 37.5%, and the process was overseen with heightened security. The result brings the BJP's strength in the state assembly to 162 of 182 seats, leaving Congress with 12, AAP with five, and a handful of independents and a Samajwadi Party member. The outcome maintains the party's dominance in Gujarat politics.
Why it matters
The result preserves BJP's strong majority in Gujarat's legislature after a key seat became vacant.
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