The sum of its parts

AHMEDABAD: In 2002, the BJP romped home in the race for Gandhinagar in a communally charged atmosphere, bagging 127 assembly seats. Five years later, chief minister Narendra Modi's development-oriented campaign made way for a polarized pitch for votes after the Congress president's 'maut ka saudagar' remark. On both occasions, the BJP won a handsome majority. TOI analyses how different regions of Gujarat reacted to poll pitches of both BJP and Congress - and what lies ahead.
Kutch: In 2002, BJP was still suffering the aftershocks of the killer quake that rocked the region a year ago. While post-Godhra violence overshadowed the BJP government's mishandling of quake relief work to some extent, BJP did not score well here despite a saffron surge across the state.
In 2007, the party reaped the fruits of development and improved its tally to five seats out of six leaving just one for the Congress.
Saurashtra: Considered the fortress of former chief minister Keshubhai Patel, BJP still found support in the peninsula in 2002 and 2007. Contrary to poll pundit predictions, BJP performed well in this region in 2007 despite an upset Keshubhai Patel staying away from the campaign. But 2012 could be a different story: Keshubhai has come out openly against Modi and some ministers in the region face strong anti-incumbency.
North: This is one region where the BJP has grown stronger. Chief minister Narendra Modi is from this region. The party increased its tally of 18 seats in 2002 to 25 in 2007 largely due to the Modi factor. The Sujalam Sufalam irrigation canal - which hit headlines for the wrong reasons - has also helped BJP garner votes here.
South Gujarat: A traditional Congress bastion, South Gujarat swung BJP's way a bit in 2002 after the post-Godhra riots. Congress however regained some lost ground in 2007. While Congress hopes to improve its tally further in 2012, BJP is banking on various welfare schemes announced for tribals.
Central Gujarat: Another Congress stronghold, voters in central Gujarat surprised everybody by siding with the BJP in the 2002 elections. It was for the first time that pockets of this region saw communal violence. However, 2007 saw a different story unfold with Congress bouncing back mostly because tribal voters returned to the party fold.