The Bihar Assembly by-election results are being widely seen as a setback for the BJP. But they are not so. In 2010, the BJP won six out of the 10 seats that went to the polls now, in alliance with the JD(U), whereas now it has won four almost on its own strength, with the LJP as an alliance partner. This has happened in spite of the RJD and the JD(U) coming together. The BJP has thus successfully encountered the combined RJD-JD(U)-Congress strength, even without Narendra Modi campaigning directly.
R. Prabu Ananth,Coimbatore
On the ground, there is very little evidence to conclude that the results are a setback for the BJP. By-polls can well be aberrations, often pinned on local or individual factors. But equally, they can provide clues to larger drifts.
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