State election results, terror politics..etc..

Hi All,

With the results of the 5 state election out, one thing is clear...Terror doesn't yet strike a chord with the electorate/ppl don't vote based on who "tackles" terror better...or do they?

The 5 state elections were dubbed as mini general election of sorts and pre poll predictions showed that BJP would win hands down in at least 4 of the 5 states..price rise, continuing farmer suicides and more importantly security issues(esp after the Mumbai attacks) were some issues where the Congress seemingly failed miserably in. But that didnt happen.

BJP was puzzled by the results..So much so that its president noted the results to be a "surprise". It had retained power in Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh but lost power in Rajasthan and failed to recapture Delhi. The voter had not rejected the BJP outright but neither did he accepted it with warm shoulders. The reasons for the rather unexpected result were quite simple. The electorate is more concerned about bread and butter issues than some vague issues like the nuclear deal or internal security(though i seriously think security is an important issue what is it to a villager living in a serene village going about his life in a peaceful manner...agree?)

The BJP desperately tried to cash in on its "zero tolerance" attitude towards to terror, post 26/11. It presumed that the voter out there would be swayed by its strong anti terror message, one it had propagated all along, and simply oversee the local issues that had bothered them the most. But they have been proven wrong. Then why did they win in some states? The reasons are the same. CMs in those states, that the BJP won, were strong figures with clean images and the governments that they led were reasonably efficient as compared to previous administrations. These factors were primarily responsible for their re elections and not some "iron image" that the BJP hoped for.

To be frank, I was pleasantly surprised by the results of the state elections. I had expected the results to be more in favour of the BJP especially in the aftermatn of the Mumbai Attacks. The way the BJP tried to scare monger the voting public, some even thought that the electorate would be cowed down tirade of advertisements.

But the election results spells good news for both the major national parties(both the Congress and BJP) and to the common man too(finally we have come into the picture..phew!)...It clearly shows that ppl wont tolerate corrupt administrations and expect efficient leaders who work for their progress...and what matters more are the local bread and butter issues...

Having said all this...the same yardstick wont apply for the general elections..ppl tend to associate security issues with the central government..so they might favour the BJP for the Lok Sabha elections...unless they decide to throw another surprise...:)

p.s. it is not of my personal opinion that the BJP is better equipped to tackle terror. its just the common perception out there. i believe that no party can simply prevent terror attacks by just being in power. we need solid measures coupled with sensitized citizenry to fight terror...

Finally....

HI All..

I know it has been more than a month since i last posted..and i have a good reason for doing so...i have not been in the best of spirits...Wipro failed to call me in the tentative month that it had allocated to me and with the job climate as it is any sane minded person would be worried...

ok i guess enough of justifications...this is the deal...i will be joining Wipro on the 29th of dec at bangalore..reporting on the 23rd...training and posting both in bangalore..

finally i can sleep peacefully tonight knowing that the job offer in hand has finally materialized into something constructive and that i will be joining soon...i must thank a lot of my frens out there(esp those placed in other companies) who have stood with me during these diff times...thank you guys...:)