So finally, after massive road shows, campaigns, dramatic speeches and demeaning the opposition, Modi finally emerged victorious as BJP enjoyed a clean sweep with a clear cut majority in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. All the excitement, war of words and extensive media coverage was laid to rest post the declarations of the Lok Sabha elections.
I say Modi and not BJP because his name was extensively promoted by the party before election. So perhaps one reason which led Modi to win was that people were lured by the Modi wave. When people went to cast their vote, what was on their mind was that they were voting for Modi and not for the BJP candidate who stood from their constituencies. This led to some shocking victories and some equally shocking defeats.
The reason why people chose to refrain from voting for Congress was many. Congress was tainted with scams and corruption which coupled with inflation, made their survival difficult. People were infuriated with the government due to the spiraling food prices and the billions of dollars stashed away in the Swiss bank. They wanted a change and Modi, the embodiment of better change, was their last hope. It could be described as among the blind, the one eyed man is the king.
Congress always played the minority and communalism card. However, Rahul Gandhi eating a meal with a Dalit family did not revive the image of his party. People wanted an end to corruption, they wanted progress, development. Here is where Modi comes into the picture. His Gujarat model of development is famous nation- wide. People wanted the same kind of development for the whole country. The 2002 Godhra carnage was left behind. People let bygones be bygones, they had to move ahead. Modi seemed to personify the change which people wanted.
Kejriwal who had promised to bail out India from corruption caught people’s attention in Delhi and they gave him an opportunity to take charge of Delhi. However, much to people’s disappointment, he resigned from the post of Chief Minister of Delhi within 49 days. That led to his downfall and spelt the doom for him. Later, when his party contested the Lok Sabha election, people rejected them.
Violations of the code of conduct by all parties, verbal abuses, lack of knowledge, spending crores on campaigning, this election saw it all. Now that BJP has won, the road ahead is not so easy. I think it will be a difficult task to find a good finance minister. On a positive note, I think they will be strict on terror. Let’s see what the next five years has in store for the nation. May BJP rule prudently and with conviction.
