Proving all the experts absolutely wrong, the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has managed a stunning victory in India’s general elections. Nobody expected this, probably not even the UPA. However, the electorate clearly had other things in mind and decided that the other options on offer were clearly not worth it.
Here is my own analysis on what may have happened -
1. There was nothing positive about the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) campaign, all they did was bash the incumbent government
2. The people were probably more concerned about the economy and security, more than religion. Note that the UPA government hasn’t done a bad job as such over the last five years.
3. The blatant display by people like Mayawati of their hunger for power probably scared a lot of voters (and to a certain extent, me)
4. Manmohan Singh himself enjoys a stellar reputation as a man who is above the typical corruption and crap rampant in Indian politics. He did a great job 15 years ago as India’s Finance Minister and most of forward-looking younger generation still remembers that
There were obviously some other factors. State chief ministers like Nitish Kumar of Bihar won handily thanks to the real developmental work seen in the state.
Finally, it looks like the Indian voter is maturing and voting for issues. Now if only the “elite” urban voter comes out and actually votes will India see a real difference.
