By IANS,
New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Wednesday gave Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi credit for the party’s civic poll win in Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, days after party colleague Sushma Swaraj said that it was not necessary that his magic would work everywhere.
BJP vice-president Najma Heptullah Wednesday said here that there was “impact of Gujarat and Narendra bhai” in the local body elections in the two union territories.
Heptullah, who is party in-charge of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, said that the party’s victory in the local body elections in the union territories was “a rejection of the government in Delhi”.
She said the party won eight of 11 seats in the district panchayats and 70 of 114 panchayat seats in Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
Heptullah said the BJP scored an emphatic victory earlier in the local body elections in Daman and Diu. The two union territories are located close to Gujarat.
She said that the BJP victory also negated the Congress charge that the party’s victory in panchayat elections in Gujarat was because voting machines were tampered with.
She said the Dadra and Nagar Haveli lacked development and the people of the area had reposed faith in the party in the Lok Sabha elections also.
Answering questions, BJP spokesman Prakash Javadekar said Modi was an able leader and denied there was any tussle among second generation leaders of the party.
Asked if Modi was emerging as a national-level leader and would play a role at the centre soon, Javadekar said: “Modi is an able leader.”
Swaraj, leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, had said in Bihar earlier this week that Modi’s magic has worked well and it does not mean that every magic will work at every place.
Modi has not campaigned during the Bihar assembly polls apparently due to reservations of Chief Minister and senior Janata Dal-United leader Nitish Kumar.
The BJP has officially maintained that it was for the party to decide who will be its campaigners during Bihar assembly elections.