BJP was routed out of power in Karnataka in a humiliating fashion today as Congress rode home with an impressive absolute majority in the southern state. The win saw some bizarre reactions though, with Congress ministers falling all over themselves to credit the win to Rahulji and Soniaji and using the Karnataka results to take down Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who campaigned for BJP in Karnataka.
Here are few questions , what we think, both the parties need to ask themselves after the results.
-Is the Karnataka mandate a reflection of India's voter sensibilities?
-Just because Modi campaigned in the state and BJP lost, does it really mean Modi will have no impact on voters in the 2014 elections?
-Does the campaigning by one or two influential politicians affect the voters so much that they run to the polling booth based on an election rally speech?
-Can we safely say that Congress's victory was based not on the ruling party's strength, but on the weakness of the opposition?
-Shouldn't we conclude that the victory was not especially significant for Congress because of the lack of political alternatives, which meant that the party was bound to win?
-Shouldn't Congress be worried by the Karnataka mandate? Because hailing it as a sign that voters will punish corruption in governance, the Congress looks really silly as it struggles with multiple corruption scandals at the centre.
-And can't the Karnataka result just be read as a sign of the public being fed up by 5 years of mis-governance by the BJP in the state which saw its top law makers embroiled in a multibillion-dollar scam involving the granting of illegal mining contracts. The scam is believed to have cost public coffers $3.6 billion and led to the resignation of state chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa. The same Yeddyurappa also ate into BJP's votes through his newly-formed Karnataka Janata Party (KJP).
These were just some logical questions from our end. But here's a look at some bizarre, un-related and typically political reactions to the Karnataka election results by our netas.
-Is the Karnataka mandate a reflection of India's voter sensibilities?
-Just because Modi campaigned in the state and BJP lost, does it really mean Modi will have no impact on voters in the 2014 elections?
-Does the campaigning by one or two influential politicians affect the voters so much that they run to the polling booth based on an election rally speech?
-Can we safely say that Congress's victory was based not on the ruling party's strength, but on the weakness of the opposition?
-Shouldn't we conclude that the victory was not especially significant for Congress because of the lack of political alternatives, which meant that the party was bound to win?
-Shouldn't Congress be worried by the Karnataka mandate? Because hailing it as a sign that voters will punish corruption in governance, the Congress looks really silly as it struggles with multiple corruption scandals at the centre.
-And can't the Karnataka result just be read as a sign of the public being fed up by 5 years of mis-governance by the BJP in the state which saw its top law makers embroiled in a multibillion-dollar scam involving the granting of illegal mining contracts. The scam is believed to have cost public coffers $3.6 billion and led to the resignation of state chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa. The same Yeddyurappa also ate into BJP's votes through his newly-formed Karnataka Janata Party (KJP).
These were just some logical questions from our end. But here's a look at some bizarre, un-related and typically political reactions to the Karnataka election results by our netas.
"That means to say, all that is said about Mr. Narendra Modi that he has a pan-India image is absolutely false and may be that because of his own certain communal agenda, which he has taken in Gujarat. I don't think his influence will go beyond the frontiers of Gujarat. This is very clear and Karnataka has sent a very right message to the BJP and also the people of this country that a type of leadership like Modi will not run this country.
Mr. Modi coming to the coastal areas, that hundred percent Congress swept. I think he should have visited these places more, we would have then swept the polls in a better way with better momentum,"
And in fact Rahul Gandhi, Dr. Manmohan Singh our Prime Minister, and also Soniaji (Sonia Gandhi), they have toured around all those places, all those places where they have addressed the meetings we have got the maximum votes and maximum seats."
"We all say that who knows Modi outside the Gujarat. BJP has lost because of their own mistakes. The truth is now coming in front of the people.It was not a fight of Narendra Modi versus Rahul Gandhi. It was an ideological fight. It was the loss of communalism and victory of inclusive ideology. It was again proved that the party who will carry along all will rule the country,"
"No one knows Narendra Modi outside Gujarat. It has been proved again by Karnataka,"
"It has been proved that he (Modi) is a big zero. He has no impact on the voters of Karnataka."
"The match is over, BJP has had an innings defeat, now they'll blame the match, the ball and the pitch"
It is a clear result against the ideology of the BJP, which has been ruling in the state of Karnataka. The people of the country know whats what and they will reject the BJP ideology as the result in Karnataka shows".