Sulking

I feel terrible. And my weekend is ruined by this Indian election results.

For me the dynastic politics of the Congress is the deal-breaker apart from a laundry list of issues I can go on and on. Nevertheless, the Indian voter has spoken and now there's no point cribbing about it.

Anyways, I think its not all bad. It's good that UPA got a major verdict in the sense that it now does not have to depend on the Left anymore. In fact the decimation of Communists is the best result of these elections IMO.

Rajasthan, Maharashtra to some extent Gujarat was disappointing for BJP. But I think Delhi,Uttarakhand, Punjab and Harayana cost them around 20 seats. Congress on the other hand gained quite a lot in the south. Andra Pradesh is now firmly in Congress umbrella. Kerela is the other state that voted overwhelmingly for the Congress this time. Both these states added 40 odd seats to Congress. That really made all the difference.

I strongly feel that for a nation to have an all round growth, a strong opposition is the key. A balance of left-of-the-center and a right-of-the-center policies are key to any nation's progress. And that's where BJP needs to position itself.

In final analysis I think few things worked for Congress.
1] Very strong media support all 5 years that conveniently over looked some key national issues.

2] Well crafted image of Gandhi family,MMS etc (again Media has a massive role here)

3]Complete and very successful demonization of BJP.

4] Reservations and loan pay offs of farmers

5] Mass transfer of muslim votes from Lalu,Paswan.Left etc to the Congress.

6] Apathy of the middle classes towards politics continues to help the Congress. The "All politicians are crooks" notion helps them win a lot of seats by default. But this is not specific to these elections.

For a non-Congress guy like me, it is easy to be cynical and pessimistic today. I think I am going to have some drinks and catch on the IPL to divert myself. That should be my Advil for a few days from this pain.