NEW DELHI: The upcoming elections in Punjab and any future elections in Madhya Pradesh, the lone remaining large state ruled by the Congress, have made the Congress determined not to dilute their Support for BSP leader Mayawati’s bid to become the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. Senior Congress leader say the Lok Sabha elections have demonstrated amply that the BSP is the pivotal force in Punjab politics, if it allies with the Akali Dal again, that combine would easily win. If it extends its UP alliance with the Congress to Punjab, it could as easily reverse the balance, they say. Elections for the Punjab assembly, which were last held in February, 1992, are due within the next three months and these may be the only state assembly elections before they are forced to face fresh Lok Sabha elections either next year or in early 1998, Congress leaders say. A good performance by the battered party in Punjab could go a long way to boosting its workers’ morale across the nation and allowing them to project it as a party on the comeback trial. Party leaders say that the BSP is now in a position to play a similar “make or break role” in Madhya Pradesh, where it won about 10 percent of the vote in the elections earlier this year. The state is crucial for the Congress, since it is the only large state the party now rules. It fared badly during the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year, partly because many traditional Congress voters opted for the parties led by Arjun Singh and Scindia instead. However, the Congress managed to regain ground in the by-elections earlier this year. Party leaders believe that a Congress BSP alliance could sweep the elections in Madhya Pradesh. The BSP, which had built powerful pockets of support around Bilaspur, Rewa and Gwalior by the turn of this decade, has demonstrated this year that it has a large number of supporters across most of the state, although it is relatively weak in the portions of Malwa south and west of Bhopal. Congress leaders insist that the BSP’s influence is growing, and extends across the entire state.
Congress leaders point out that states of Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and UP send about 140 MPs to the Lok Sabha. Additionally the BSP’s support, albeit marginal, could tilt the balance in states like Rajasthan and Delhi. The results of assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Rajasthan over the past six years have shown that the BJP and the Congress have almost exactly the same strength. Asked about the political impact of the BSP leaders’ recent attack on journalists, a very senior party office bearer said on Sunday that the BSP’s voters would not be affected by such incidents. As for the Congress, it would just have to sit out the storm of protests from the media. The alternative for the party could be political oblivion, at least in these states.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 30, 1996
