Well, the Karnataka elections have provided an interesting result.....the BJP getting 110 of the 224 assembly seats......although they have fallen just short of an absolute majority of 113, the BJP would surely go on on to form its first own government south of the Vindhyas. Thats a big achievement for a party that had long considered itself a nationalistic party but was confined primarily to the Hindi heartland of MP, UP, Rajasthan and Delhi. Gujarat being the only non - hindi speaking state of significant proportions in its tally.
Whats interesting about this result though is the fact that BJP thinks its their time in the South now. I would beg to differ a bit. There are primarily two reasons for this - One, the BJP won in Karnataka this time as quite a lot of sympathy votes from the JDS went to the BJP. People there have criticized the JDS for back stabbing the BJP and imposing the elections on them. If we look at the tally closer, the Congress has 80 which is similar to what it got last time, while the JDS has gone down from 50+ to 28. Even during the last elections the BJP was the single largest party, but cudnt form the government due to the coalition politics of the INC and JDS. Hence I am not too sure it was an election won on the basis of the popularity of the party.
The second and a more important reason is the fact the Karnataka is the only state in the southern region, where the local parties are not too many nor are they popular. Kerala for example is always divided between the Congress and the Communists, AP between Congress and the Telugu Desam while Tamil Nadu is always a game between the 2 Dravidian parties, the DMK and the AIADMK. Added to this is the fact that the RSS and its influence have been maximum in Karnataka compared to the other states in the south historically due to the proximity of Northern Karnataka to Maharashtra.
Lets see how this works out. Kudos must be given where its due, and with Karnataka in ite kitty the BJP must be sure of performing well in the next General Elections. But before reaching Delhi, they have an important stop at Madhya Pradesh.
PS : Opinions are my own, comments are invited.
Cheers
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3 comments:
i am NOT much into politics so i wouldnt know the nitty gritties well; that is to say from whatever little I know, INC with too socialist an approach (or too feeble a stand, as has been in the nuke deal) has now received far more flak than it could digest...
whether BJP will now spread its reign all over the south is far from predictable; though, if done, the strength of foothold will be undeniable! of course, given the current Karnataka-TN stand-off... it would be interesting to see the moves BJP takes in this regard...!
and of course with Indian politics, much like anything else Indian, you never know!
Yes, the TN - KA standoff would be a big flash point....BJP would try and get close to the AIADMK before the general elections. If they are successful, they can reap in rewards for the same
i read somewhere that Congress nand JDS together also do not form an absolute majority... so there can not be much coalition politics this time around... and thus it pretty much seals it for BJP..! unless of course soemthing bizarre, which is not uncommon (note the pun) in IndiPol, happens..!
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