The results of the two Assembly elections show that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi still leads a juggernaut even after the introduction of “controversial” reforms such as Demonetisation, GST and Aadhaar. The way in which Mr. Modi took charge of campaigning and ran the show indicates that he is still the star campaigner of the BJP. Too much of campaigning by the Prime Minister is not a bad thing as long as the government’s work and agenda-setting are unaffected. Congress president Rahul Gandhi has still a lot to do to match Mr. Modi in terms of giving him a good fight. People, especially urban voters, can see through the pseudo ideals of the Congress. The party has to introduce a new crop of leaders who have a clean image and are sincere about bringing in changes at the constituency level.
Jayaprasad N.,
Palakkad
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The BJP’s electoral victories in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh send out a message that the communal factor still has a major role in elections. The Congress and the BJP played the communal card and avoided political issues. The verdict would have been against the BJP had it fought the election on political issues. The Congress failed to highlight the impact of demonetisation and GST and also played the caste card while seeking political alliances. The fact is that the ‘secular India’ agenda was absent. For the BJP, the decrease in the number of seats shows that the its political future in Gujarat is uncertain. The Congress has still much to do if it is to pitch itself as an alternative to the BJP. People want a choice in 2019.
B. Prabha,
Varkala, Kerala
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The most important takeaway from the Gujarat result is that the people of the State have rejected caste-based mobilisation, which was formulated by the Congress to revive its political fortunes. The only way to gain votes is to fulfil the electoral manifesto promises and usher in development. The campaigning during the election touched a new low. The governments in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh must adopt people-centric policies and work selflessly for the political and economic empowerment of the masses.
Nishant Choudhary,
Ajmer, Rajasthan
The kind of campaign that Mr. Modi carried out can win an election only in Gujarat. I think most of the voters who have returned the BJP to power had only two things in mind. First of course a son of the soil cannot lose. Second, they abhorred the thought that someone from the Congress could become their Chief Minister. It did not matter that Mr. Modi avoided any reference to development. It did not matter that no worthwhile development has taken place under an inept and insensitive government. In the event, selfish individual and group interests prevailed. This is an outright betrayal of the needs and aspirations of a huge, underprivileged population by a large, privileged population close to the seat of power.
M. Balakrishnan,
Bengaluru
Even though the BJP has been able to retain Gujarat, due credit also should be given to the Congress pPresident, Rahul Gandhi, for giving the BJP a scare. The alliance with caste groupings proved to be a boon for the Congress. At the same time, it is a blow against the Congress in Himachal Pradesh.
Having improved its tally in Gujarat, the Congress, one is confident, will not take shelter under the excuse of “faulty EVMs”. Overall, the result in Gujarat should be an eye-opener to the BJP — that they cannot continue to take people for a ride. There are many election promises which remain to be implemented by the Modi government.
N. Mahadevan,
Chennai
It is time the BJP starts introspection over shedding some of its arrogance now that Rahul Gandhi has registered his presence and helped the Congress become relevant in Gujarat.
It is a warning signal to those in charge in the government that people, despite the tall claim of reforms, still want a trouble-free life. The writing on the wall is clear.
R. Bhaskaran,
Srirangam, Tamil Nadu