As for campaigning, who prevented Rahul from campaigning in Karnataka on par with Modi? Why did Rahul bow out after campaigning in Karnataka just for namesake? The BJP’s victory in many constituencies is attributed to Modi’s campaign and there has been an increase in BJP’s vote share. There is nothing to prove that Rahul Gandhi was instrumental in increasing the Congress’ vote share.
As the Congress has won the Karnataka Assembly elections, pro-Congress intelligentsia have started analysing the causes for the defeat of the Bharatiya Janata Party in these polls. Initially, they had advanced three arguments. Firstly, they described the elections as mainly a battle between Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi and that a victory for the Congress would mean Rahul gaining an upper hand over Modi. Secondly, they predicted the total rout of the BJP in the south.
Thirdly, they described the elections as the beginning of the end of the Modi-led BJP government at the national level. All the three arguments are totally false.
In fact, the Karnataka polls were not national elections; they were just state-level polls. Like leaders of all other parties, Modi had campaigned along with other leaders of the BJP. There is no doubt that there is no other charismatic leader, not only in the BJP, but also in the country.
As a disciplined activist of the party, he shared the burden of the poll campaign along with other leaders. Therefore, the Karnataka polls cannot be treated as a referendum on Modi’s rule. The election result is also not a referendum on the efficiency of Rahul Gandhi.
As for campaigning, who prevented Rahul from campaigning in Karnataka on par with Modi? Why did Rahul bow out after campaigning in Karnataka just for namesake? The BJP’s victory in many constituencies is attributed to Modi’s campaign and there has been an increase in BJP’s vote share. There is nothing to prove that Rahul Gandhi was instrumental in increasing the Congress’ vote share.
In Karnataka, the BJP, with a total vote share of 36%, had won 104 seats. During the current polls too, the BJP vote share did not come down. It means the popularity of the BJP among people is intact. In Bangaluru, where Modi had campaigned vigorously in favour of party nominees, the vote share of the BJP has increased by 6%. In south Karnataka, the Congress ate into the Janata Dal’s vote share by 5.5 per cent causing electoral losses to the BJP. In coastal Karnataka, the BJP’s vote share remained intact. The party polled 47% of the total votes cast. The contention of the Congress and some regional parties that Telugu people of Karnataka voted against the BJP is false. The BJP won in the seats where the Telugu people are dominant. In Bangaluru, where 40% of the people are Telugus, the BJP won 16 out of 28 seats. In Yelahanka, Viswanadha Reddy won, while Satishreddy won in Bommanahalli. Besides, many Telugu contestants of the party won the elections.
In 2019, the Congress won in MP and Rajasthan Assembly polls, but failed miserably in the LS polls. Therefore, the Karnataka outcome will not boost the Congress’ prospects at the national level. There is no scope for the Cong to emerge as an alternative to the BJP.
In the municipal elections held in UP, out of 1,420 seats, the BJP won in 813, while the Samajwadi Party won in 191. The BSP finished with 85 seats and the Congress had to contend with only 77.
BJP candidates went on to become mayors in 17 cities, including Varanasi, Lucknow, Ayodhya, Jhansi, and Prayagraj. It is not going to be easy for opposition parties to lock horns with the BJP in the elections to be held for state assemblies of Rajasthan, MP, Chhattisgarh, and Telangana. In these states, Congress leaders are fighting for positions and power.
Surprisingly, CPM politburo member and former Tripura CM Manik Sarkar described the Congress’ victory in Karnataka as a major defeat of Narendra Modi. In the Tripura Assembly elections, held three months ago, the people of the state gave a huge mandate to the BJP. Has he forgotten it? The BJP grabbed power in Tripura as well as Nagaland. Today, the BJP and its allies are in power in 15 states.
In this scenario, the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are going to be held under special circumstances.
The Modi-led BJP has emerged as a formidable force and it has been functioning with the objectives of achieving development, providing good governance to people, promoting nationalism, and uprooting corruption.Under Modi’s leadership, infrastructure worth lakhs of crores are being developed in all parts of the country. Thousands of crores of rupees are reaching the bank accounts of beneficiaries directly under various government schemes, eliminating middlemen. Enemy countries like Pakistan and China have realised that provoking India would be akin to playing with fire.
Well-trained army of 18 crore party workers are supporting the BJP. Millions of people who subscribe to nationalism strongly believe that BJP alone can make the country as a top nation in world.
There is no doubt that the unholy alliance of the corrupt would go to any lengths to unseat the BJP. But people know the anarchic rule of the corrupt, their misdeeds, and exploitation of the country by the family members of the powers that be and fissiparous activities. They know that if these forces come to power, the country would go to the dogs.
