Patel, an actor and a model by profession, was ecstatic in her thumping win in the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) elections on Tuesday. She garnered over 23,000 votes with a margin of over 12,000 votes over her BJP rivals, Komalben Patel and Mamtaben Patel in Ward 16, Poorna (West) region.

 

"I have no words to express myself. Of course, I was confident on winning, but not with such a huge margin, especially when we were fighting against a sitting corporator," Payal told IANS.

 

Payal, a final year B.Com student from Amreli, is an actress who has acted in a Gujarati film, 'Taari Maari Dosti'. She has featured in more than 50 songs, some of them Gujarati hit remixes like, 'Maiyer Ma Manadu Nathi Mantu'.

 

"We were in constant touch with the people of my ward since past six months and I practically know each and everybody in my ward. We have so many issues like narrow roads, open gutters, no government school, among others. My first priority is to do something about the open gutters," added Payal.

 

Contesting civic body elections in Gujarat for the first time, the AAP managed to win 27 out of 120 seats in SMC. While the BJP won the remaining 93 seats, the Congress failed to secure even a single seat.

 

"I don't think that it makes a difference whether I am in the ruling party or in the opposition. I firmly believe that if one wants to serve the public, even while in the opposition, one can make a difference," added Payal.

 

Looking at it's big entry into Gujarat with the SMC wards win, the AAP chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will be holding a roadshow in Surat on Friday, to thank the voters.