The Karnataka Assembly election results have brought out many salient traits of Indian democracy. The reasons for the success of the Congress and for that matter defeat of the BJP are many. The outcome has taught many a lesson to our political parties which have been in the habit of taking power and mandate of people for granted.
Is the outcome of Karnataka Assembly elections a precursor to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections? Will it ensure the coming together of opposition parties on a grand scale? Or will it spell the doom for the political predominance of a single party?
The Karnataka Assembly election results have brought out many salient traits of Indian democracy. The reasons for the success of the Congress and for that matter defeat of the BJP are many. The outcome has taught many a lesson to our political parties which have been in the habit of taking power and mandate of people for granted. Although it is a fact that ‘Nothing succeeds like success’ and the truth behind it is that the chances of failure or defeat are always lurking. So, nothing should be taken for granted; for, in a democracy the pulse of the people is always unpredictable.
Taking advantage of a semblance of favourability, no party can in a definitive manner say that things are in their favour. The BJP, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has seen successes in an unprecedented way.
Election after election, state after state it has won like anything. The political situation in the country has come to such a pass that there is none to face the BJP and almost all the opposition parties in the country have come to such a realization until BRS under the leadership of KCR, Chief Minister of Telangana, tried hard to bring the anti-BJP parties together. And to some extent, KCR’s persistence to forge a united opposition has paid off not only in the south but in the North also, where the BJP’s political roots are so deep.
Now as expected, the game-changing scene has come to the fore in the name of the Karnataka elections. That Prime Minister Narendra Modi is invincible has been shattered with the decisive defeat of the BJP in the latest poll results. By going alone in the elections, the Congress party has proved that it is worth its salt and that its national relevance is required. That the rule of a single party at the Centre and states has been rejected by people of Karnataka in a judgment and it has already brought in a paradigm shift. The Congress party, which had ruled the nation for decades together without strong opposition, tasted the sourness of defeat for being away from the people. Finally, realization dawned on the grand old party after being out of power at the Centre and in most of the states, which were aptly taken over by BJP that has been bent on capturing every state to have a pan-India political presence.
The very concept of double-engine growth of the BJP could not or did not lure the people of Karnataka and in that way, the party’s state leadership was to be blamed. They could not take forward the message as they were so confident of PM Modi’s charisma. That cost a lot for the BJP, which thought a second straight win in Karnataka would pave the way for entrenching well in the south. Now with the rout in the state, BJP’s hopes of a strong southern political presence have been dashed to the ground. For the Congress, which had been in a survival crisis since losing power at the Centre in 2014, the major victory in Karnataka would serve as a booster dose to surge ahead to confidently face General Election.
The victory is a redeeming one for the party which fought straightly with the BJP and defeated it in a way that boosted the thinking of other anti-BJP parties to come together to fight the Lok Sabha elections. Other aspects also came in handy for the Congress in this election. The disqualification of Rahul Gandhi and his Bharat Jodo Yatra helped the party a lot in the election. Whether you be in power or out of it, for a political party connection with people is the survival mantra. And same is the case with ruling parties that are oblivious to the ground realities.
Taking advantage of the morale-boosting victory, the Congress party may be preparing for the upcoming Assembly elections soon. Since it is big victory after five years of survival struggle, it is incumbent on the party’s leadership to think over what led to this victory and what caused defeat in the last nine years. Ultimately, it is the connection with people that makes wonders and the lack of it that teaches lessons.
