By-polls: Modi magic ends in 100 days?

BJP gets only 8 out of 18 Assembly seats

• Nitish-Lalu-Cong combine wins 6 seats in Bihar; BJP 4
• In Karnataka, Cong wins 2 of 3, BJP 1
• Cong wins one seat each in MP, Punjab SBJP wins 2 in MP, and SAD wins 1 in Punjab

New Delhi: Within 100 days of his taking office as the prime minister, Narendra Modi has got a negative vote on his popularity, if the results of the by-elections in 18 assembly seats across four states stretching Karnataka in southern India to Madhya Pradesh in central, Bihar in east and Punjab in north are any indication. The BJP had an upperhand in all these constituencies when the Lok Sabha polls were held under Modi’s leadership. The setback was particularly grim in Bihar where the party had 8 of the 10 seats and was reduced to four. The fact that the Nitish-Lalu-Congress combine could win 6 seats could also mean setback to the BJP’s plans of capturing this state on in its own when the elections are held in 2015. On the other hand, the non-NDA parties may have stumbled upon a formula to counter the Modi onslaught that had decimated them in the 2014 elections. Summing up the situation, Bihar’s BJP leader Sushil Modi said: “This is 1-1. We won the Lok Sabha elections. They have won the by-polls. Let us move to the final round.” But JD(U)’s K C Tyagi had a counterpoint: “It is for the first time that the image of a central government had taken such a beating in such a short time. We had campaigned against the 100 days of Modi Sarkar, and the people have given their verdict.”

Winning two of the three seats in Karnataka with impressive margins, the Congress established that there is no resurgence for the BJP. Even in the third seat, former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa’s son could manage a win only with a reduced margin. The single seats won by the Congress in MP and Punjab are also morale boosters. Out of 18 seats BJP alliance won 8 seats- 4 in Bihar, 2 in MP, 1 in Karnataka, 1 in Punjab (SAD).