Regional parties to be game changers
In Rajasthan, the BSP won six berths, while Ajit Singh led Rashtriya Lok Dal won one.
New Delhi: Results of Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan clearly indicate that regional players will play a key role in the Opposition unity. While the Congress led alliance ‘Prajakutami’ failed to breach the K Chandrasekhar Rao led TRS bastion in Telangana, Ms Mayawati’s BSP succeeded in capturing six assembly berths in Rajasthan and two each in Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. In Madhya Pradesh, Akhilesh yadav led SP also scored one seat. Though efforts were made by both the Congress and the BSP to stich an alliance in MP, Chattisgarh and Rajasthan, it did not materialised over seat sharing formula.
In Chattisgarh, where the BSP had aligned with former chief minister Ajit Jogi’s Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (JCC), the alliance ended up denting the BJP’s tribal vote base, with the alliance capturing six assembly berths in the 90 member assembly. However, Mr Jogi, as claimed by many, failed to be the ‘King maker’ in Chattisgarh where the Congress on its own got a clear majority.
In Rajasthan, the BSP won six berths, while Ajit Singh led Rashtriya Lok Dal won one.
BJP rebel Hanuman Beliwal, who formed the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party bagged three while the Bhartiya Tribal Party, formed by former JD(U) leader Chotubhai Vasava, won two berths.
In Telangana, TRS supremo and caretaker chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao proved that his decision for go for early polls was a right political decision as the party won 88 assembly berths, big jump from the last polls when it had won 63 seats. Assauddin Owaisi led AIMIM, which supported the TRS, also won six seats and was leading at one till late in the evening.
“Whenever Congress tied up with a regional party, Rahul Gandhi cost them votes. MK Stalin in Tamil Nadu, Akhilesh Yadav in UP and the Left front in West Bengal suffered due to Congress. In Telangana, (TDP chiedf)N Chandrababu Naidu is being blamed for a big defeat of Congress and his national efforts will soon be junked,” claimed BJP Rajya Sabha MP, GVL Narsimha Rao, whose party, the BJP, could manage just one seat.