There is no mistaking the fact that the BJP’s electoral victory in the hitherto red bastion of Tripura, displacing the CPM government of Manik Sarkar and banishing the CPM hook, line and sinker, is spectacular. A quarter century of communist rule has been comprehensively ended by a party that in the last Assembly elections in 2013 had polled a mere 1.3 per cent votes, with all but one of its candidates losing their deposits. That this reflects a level of complete disillusionment with the Left parties is beyond question.
It is noteworthy too that the Congress, which had for long been the lone challenger of the Left, though it was a poor second, has been decimated. The cadres of the BJP in alliance with a local outfit, the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), worked tirelessly for victory buoyed by the support extended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah. On the other hand, it is a sad commentary on the commitment of the newly-anointed Congress president Rahul Gandhi that when the results came, he was away to Italy on one of his frequent vacations. As for the Left, the internecine war between the factions led by current CPM chief, Sitaram Yechury, and his predecessor Prakash Karat is taking its toll on the party’s cadres.
In Nagaland, where too Assembly elections were held, the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) and the BJP virtually monopolised the 60 Assembly seats, leaving nothing for the Congress and a mere two seats for independents. Neiphieu Rio, an elected member of Lok Sabha from Nagaland parliamentary constituency, had resigned his seat in Lok Sabha to lead his party the NDPP in the Assembly polls. Rio had been chief minister of Nagaland from 2003 for 11 years. What the BJP can feel encouraged about is that Christians and tribals are believed to have voted en bloc for it despite fears that the minorities would not support it.
The Congress can draw some comfort from the fact that in Meghalaya, it emerged as the single largest party though with a much-diminished vote share. However, with the regional parties — the Naga People’s Front (NPF) and Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) — both linked to the BJP, power may elude the Congress. All in all, with three north-eastern states already in the BJP kitty, and the impressive showing this time around, the party’s elation is understandable as it prepares for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
