The BJP took power at the Centre promising achhe din (Good days lie ahead). Two years down the line, even as people and political opponents pillory the ruling party’s claim for good days, it’s certainly achhe din for the party itself. The recently concluded assembly elections in five states not only opened new frontiers for the saffron party, but also has helped it consolidate its position for the 2019 general polls as now it would be BJP vs the rest. In 2014, the fight was mainly between Congress-led UPA and BJP-led NDA.
The election results have also proved that BJP is quick to learn from its mistakes. The party had to eat a humble pie after the Narendra Modi vs Nitish Kumar battle was won by the latter at a state level. Learning lessons, the party consciously did not project the prime minister as the party’s face at the state level. Instead it allowed the state leaders to find their groove. Therefore, they not only got strong leaders at state level but also saved the prime minister from any embarrassment in case of defeat.
If forming the government in Assam and opening an account in Kerala were BJP’s achievements, Mamata Banerjee and J. Jayalalithaa scripted history as comeback queens. Bucking the trend of coming to power alternately in Tamil Nadu, Jayalalithaa proved her critics and exit polls wrong to emerge victorious.
Her win also underscored another important point that corruption necessarily might not be the only issue weighing on the voters’ mind. Now, it remains to be seen how the massive and decicisve mandates are used for people’s welfare.
DC take
Election after election it has been seen that the Grand Old Party of India — Congress — is refusing to learn from its mistakes. One after another, senior leaders have given call for a “surgery”of the party to make it a battle-ready. However, the powers-that-be in the party have chosen to look the other way. A healthy and strong opposition is in the interest of the democracy and the Congress needs to rise to the occasion and fulfill its duty.
