Heena Sharma Blog

The Narendra Modi government had in 2014 promised reforms. It had also committed to creating jobs and doubling farm incomes. However, the Modi government failed to walk its talk. A jibe from Congress chief Rahul Gandhi in the last week of January 2015 that Modi’s was a ‘suit boot ki sarkar’ (a government of and for moneybags) — over the government’s land acquisition Bill — and a defeat in the Delhi Assembly polls in February 2015, made the Modi government take refuge in the comfort of plucking low-hanging fruits. ALSO READ:   Election results LIVE: Big day for Rahul; Cong leads in CG, Rajasthan, MP It expended its energies in widening the net of poor who get subsidised cooking gas, claimed it has constructed more roads, also claimed to have ensured power supply to more homes and launched an ambitious housing scheme for urban and rural poor. Rather euphemistically, the Modi government termed it ‘garib kalyan’, or welfare of the poor, which also included a crop insuranc

Whatever the final position of various parties turns out to be, it is evident that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has suffered severe body blows in the three Hindi heartland states it rules with substantial majorities – Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. It is too far behind in Chhattisgarh and will most likely not form the next government. The trends as of noon on the counting day show the Congress in the lead in the other two states as well, although these races are quite tight. Rajasthan would likely see a Congress government, though with a smaller majority than it expected. If at all the BJP wins Madhya Pradesh, it would do so by the proverbial skin of its teeth. That should come as no surprise (except to diehard BJP supporters) as all opinion surveys and most exit polls had predicted this outcome. ALSO READ: Election results LIVE: Congress stumped out of Mizoram, MNF wins 12 seats It would be tempting to attribute this result to the anti-incumbency factor

The results of the Assembly elections in five States — Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram — will be out on Tuesday. After the polling ended for the Telangana and Rajasthan Assemblies on Friday evening, most exit polls predicted a Congress resurgence in northern India. All exit polls said Rajasthan was unlikely to break its 25-year-old habit of throwing out the incumbent government, with the Congress slated to win the state. Several exit polls predicted the Bharatiya Janata Party's 15-year-rule in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh could also end. ALSO READ: Elections results 2018 LIVE updates: Counting of votes to begin in 5 states However, most exit polls indicated the Bahujan Samaj Party-Ajit Jogi alliance in Chhattisgarh might have hurt the Congress, with the BJP poised to win a fourth successive win there. A majority of the exit polls also predicted the incumbent Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) could retain the state and the electo