With the release of the election results, the Congress in southern India’s Telangana has emerged stronger. The central and state leadership of the Congress is confident that they will secure at least 70 out of the 119 seats in the legislative assembly. However, even if the number of seats falls short, the newly elected legislators will be accommodated in the neighboring state of Karnataka, where the ruling party, BJP, cannot afford to split its legislators.
Telangana has been under the power of the BJP for the past 10 years. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) is highly popular in the state. However, in the last three to four months, Congress has gained momentum in the state and is posing a significant challenge to the BJP, the main opposition party. Despite the outcome, Congress remains optimistic about its prospects in the state. The election analysis reflects Congress’s advancement, with the party securing the second position, while the BJP trails behind.
In the state of Karnataka, Congress President and Chief Minister-elect, Revanth Reddy, announced on Friday that they will win 80 seats out of 119. At the same time, he stated that the promises made during the election campaign would be implemented in the first cabinet meeting. Karnataka has witnessed a similar strategy by Congress.
The election results for five states will be announced next Monday. Before that, Shashi Tharoor, a Member of Parliament from Kerala, congratulated Revanth Reddy for the victory in Telangana.
Although Congress is the single largest party in Telangana, if it falls just short of 60 seats, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) could play a decisive role in forming the government.
The leader of this political party based in Hyderabad, Asaduddin Owaisi, has expressed support for KCR (they are expected to win around five to seven seats). Owaisi has already stated that KCR will be the Chief Minister for the third time.
However, if KCR fails to secure a majority, it is uncertain how BJP will respond. Congress has repeatedly accused the three parties of collusion in election campaigns, but no leader from the BJP has provided an answer to this question. Even though Congress has criticized the alleged secret alliances among the three parties in election campaigns, there is still no answer as to whether KCR will extend strategic support to the BJP in order to counter Congress.
The results of the booth-wise analysis indicate that Congress and BJP leaders in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are confident of victory. The leaders of both parties in these states have confidently claimed their victories. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said, “I always say, to run the country, one needs vision, not just television. Every Congress worker needs to be vigilant so that the counting day is not a silent day for the rulers.”
Kamal Nath, the only claimant for the chief ministerial post of Congress in Madhya Pradesh, challenged Shivraj Chouhan’s claim of victory. Today, in an exclamation, he said, “I always say, to run the country, one needs vision, not just television. Every Congress worker needs to be vigilant so that the counting day is not a silent day for the rulers.”
In Rajasthan, Congress leaders are also confident about victory. They believe that after 30 years, there will be a change in the trend of the first change in power. The tradition will change, and good governance will be established. However, BJP leaders in the state claim that Marwad has come under their influence.
In this situation, while Congress leaders in Karnataka are confident about winning the election, BJP leaders claim that Marwar has come under their influence. Only Sunday will tell who will win.
