With the date of the first phase of polling on December 1 approaching, the BJP has intensified its campaign led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the tribal belt of south Gujarat, a Congress bastion. Apart from the traditional rivalry between the ruling BJP and Congress, the region is abuzz with the entry of the Aam Aadmi Party, which is threatening both the parties,
Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) founder Chhotu Vasava will not contest from his traditional Assembly seat Jhagadia in Gujarat's Bharuch district, from where he has won seven times in a row.
Long caught between two polarities, Gujarat's electoral field has expanded to include a third party with the Aam Aadmi Party challenging the ruling BJP as well as the opposition Congress that has lost ground but still has significant presence.
BJP has won every Gujarat Assembly election from 1995 onwards. It has been in power since, except for a brief period from 1996 to 1998 when its leader Shankarsinh Vaghela rebelled and formed a government with Congress s support.