Electoral augury

BJP comfortably voted into power in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh, devastated in Mizoram, and Congress surprise victory (at least to me) in Telangana, trouncing both the BJP and the ruling BRS.

Lesson learnt - the BJP steamroller is not something the Congress can tackle single-handedly any more, except occasionally here and there under special circumstances, probably even less so at the national general elections next year, no matter what pipe dreams they might still be dreaming. 

I am not gloating. I have no reason to. I can neither forget that the Congress has been the root of all political evil in India since 1947 along with most of the good that has been achieved, nor that the BJP is doing a lot of things it shouldn't if it really has the long-term welfare of the country (meaning only the vast majority of ordinary people) in mind.

I speak only for democracy, and for democracy even to survive, a strong and coherent opposition that knows its own mind is absolutely essential. So, for the sake of democracy, I do hope that the Congress gets off its high horse and goes quickly into a real and meaningful electoral (as well as post-electoral) understanding with all the other major opposition parties, so that the BJP at least has to face a strong fight in the 2024 parliamentary elections, and is kept on its toes under the law and the Constitution after - as it seems very likely as of today - it is returned to power once more.

Remember: democracy has been said to be 'not the best, but the least bad of all systems of government known to man'. Destroying it leads inevitably to the reduction of vast numbers into unthinking, uncomplaining poverty, drudgery and servitude. The tragedy is that people start missing it most only when it is lost, and it invariably takes a lot of time, pain and loss to bring it back. 'Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it'.