Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Praful Patel on Monday said the Gujarat results could have “been different” if the Congress had aligned with his party. “If they (Congress) would have formed an alliance with the NCP, then it would have been fruitful, and things could have been different,” Patel told reporters here outside Parliament. He said the Congress’ “weak presence” in rural areas of the state also led to its failure. “The BJP has presence all over in the rural areas, while the Congress lacks it and thus they could not gain,” he opined. The ruling BJP was on Monday set to retain power in Gujarat, while the Congress again settled for second place but with an improved showing.