The opposition DMK-Congress alliance has won in the Tamil Nadu assembly elections. Actor Kamal Haasan and his Makkal Needhi Maiam or MNM, made a rather drab electoral debut in the 2019 general election, failing to win a single seat. This time, Haasan was trailing.
The people saw this election as a choice between the BJP and BJP-controlled alliances and that of the DMK, which stands to oppose the BJP and its ideology. The DMK has also won in constituencies including Kurinjipadi, Neyveli, Virudhachalam. The BJP’s state unit chief L Murugan was ahead in Dharapuram and AIADMK leaders and state ministers KC Veeramani and Benjamin were ahead in Jolarpet and Maduravoyal.
Assembly election results in 2021, clear that BJP will form govt in Assam. Congress leading the alliance with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), the United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) and the Gana Suraksha Party (GSP), which mainly represent the Bodo and Sarania communities respectively, the BJP faced stiff competition from two corners this year: the first being the Congress-led Grand Alliance of which the minority-backed All India United Democratic Front, the Bodoland People’s Front, which had control over the Bodoland Territorial Council for nearly two decades, and marginal players such as Anchalik Gana Morcha, Communist Party of India (Marxist), CPI and CPI (Marxist-Leninist); the other was from two newly formed regional parties — the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) and the Raijor Dal which emerged out of the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests that swept Assam in 2019.
On the other hand, change of guard is all set to happen after 10 years in Tamil Nadu with the DMK-led alliance coasting towards an emphatic victory in the 2021 Assembly polls. The DMK, led by its President M.K. Stalin won maximum Assembly constituencies and it formed the government on its own. The DMK-led alliance has notched up a comfortable lead routing the AIADMK front across the state barring the western belt where the latter is holding its own. With poll victory in sight, DMK cadres assembled at the party headquarters here and celebrated by bursting crackers and dancing, with no adherence to Covid-19 safety protocols.
The party cadres are visibly happy as DMK is expected to maintain the lead and finally win the poll to capture power in the state after a decade. According to Election Commission data, the DMK secured 37.2 per cent of the votes polled and with allies, it was about 43 per cent while the AIADMK got 33.5 per cent and along with allies, it was about 41 per cent. The AIADMK has put up a good performance despite the expectations/predictions to the contrary. The party had the issue of dual leadership (Coordinator O. Panneerselvam, Joint Coordinator K. Palaniswami), and anti-BJP sentiments in the state.
In 2019 there was an anti-Modi wave in Tamil Nadu. But in the 2021 Assembly elections, Stalin was at the centre stage but there was no wave in his favour to rout the AIADMK. One interesting aspect of this Assembly poll is the NTK party that has emerged as a third force in many constituencies after the DMK and the AIADMK.
As the counting of votes of Puducherry assembly election 2021 were underway. The 15th legislative polls in Puducherry, which is currently under the President’s rule, decide the fate of 324 candidates across the 30 constituencies. The V Narayanasamy-led Congress government collapsed in February 2021. The four districts consisting of 30 seats voted on April 6 to elect a new chief minister. The four districts comprise Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam. BJP won here undoubtedly.
In West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee is likely to return as the Chief Minister for the third consecutive term with the TMC leading in over 200 seats. In Tamil Nadu, MK Stalin is set to become the state Chief Minister with the DMK-led alliance leading in over 140 seats. In Kerala, the Pinarayai Vijayan-led LDF government looks set to create history by becoming the first government to fight incumbency and retain power in the state. The Congress, meanwhile, had a dismal performance in the state, with the UDF leading in only 41 seats at present. In Assam, the BJP is set to have a second term with the party’s alliance leading in 76 of the 126 seats while the Congress alliance is leading in 48. In Puducherry, the NRC+ alliance is inching towards the halfway mark with leads in 12 seats.
