Congress accepts defeat in Gujarat

New Delhi:Congress on Sunday conceded defeat in the Gujarat Assembly elections.

"It is a great victory for him (Narendra Modi), it is a remarkable victory. I do not grudge him the victory," Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi said as trends in the counting of votes indicated a clear win for BJP.

However, he said the election victory does not remove the "blot" or invalidate what all had happened under Modi's government in the post-Godhra riots.

"An electoral victory can never invalidate violations of basic secular values," Singhvi said.

"Modi deserves congratulations," Singhvi said. He said the BJP's success in the elections shows that some of the "tactics" Modi used have worked.

"The victory is certainly limited to Gujarat and a certain kind of divisive politics has worked there," Singhvi said.

He said the party was obviously disappointed at the results, but added that it was surprised as it was expecting a much narrower margin.