The results of the assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, as well as the bypolls in various states, have continued the stabilising trend seen in the earlier J&K and Haryana elections. It seems the voters were as surprised by the Lok Sabha election results as were the pollsters. It has become clear now that BJP voters actively voted to compensate for the complacency shown in the Lok Sabha contest. It was perhaps a tactical mistake on the part of the BJP to ask for ‘400 paar’, which led many to believe that a majority was a certainty, and no special effort was needed at the hustings.
The latest results do not, of course, mean that the BJP’s political goals have been achieved. It could not provide a state level leader in Jharkhand that could match Hemant Soren’s appeal. The local issues prevailed over the ‘national’ narrative being offered by the saffron party. The one solace is that it received the most votes among all individual parties. All the unrest in West Bengal over the hospital incident did not keep the TMC from sweeping the bypolls in the state. The BJP will have to find ways to counter the hold TMC has at the grassroots. The battle will continue for some time.
Despite the resounding victory in Maharashtra, the BJP will face the challenge of satisfying the ambitions of Devendra Phadnavis and Ajit Pawar. Its earlier alliance with the original Shiv Sena was broken because of the rivalry for the chief minister’s post. It cannot afford to hand over the Hindutva vote to a regional party. However, the latest mandate is clearly for Eknath Shinde to continue as Chief Minister. How then is BJP going to remain the dominant party and also placate Phadnavis and Pawar? It is a problem of plenty that will remain a headache for the BJP’s central leadership.
Also worth appreciating is the recovery made by UP’s Yogi Adityanath with his ‘batenge toh katenge’ clarion call. It found resonance not just in UP but also in modified form as ‘ek hain to safe hain’ in Maharashtra. The Samajwadi Party was cut to size and will have to find new ways to further its cause. As usual, the Congress underperformed except for in Wayanad that has become another family borough of the Gandhis. It can be safely said that the BJP has recovered from its Lok Sabha losses. The opposition, on its part, will have to get beyond blaming EVMs and practice real politics.
