Sonia Gandhi sweeps BJP-led NDA
New
Delhi: The Gandhi dynasty swept back to power on Thursday
on a shock wave of anger among millions of rural poor, who
felt left behind by the country's economic boom and voted
out BJP-led government. Jubilation swept the party office
as a beaming Sonia Gandhi, who single-handedly took on Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) stalwarts, personally meeting and intermingling
with rural masses, made her first public appearance since
the results. Congress, led by Sonia Gandhi and her children,
Rahul and Priyanka, the new faces of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty,
could take power by next week for the first time since 1996.
Analysts
say the new government is likely to continue the reforms
crucial for Asia's third-largest economy, but they might
have to be redesigned to ensure benefits reach the poor
and are not restricted to the urban upper classes. What
this could mean, under pressure from the communists, is
slower privatisations. Officials from the Communist Party
of India (Marxist) said, for example, they wanted more consultation
with workers before selling state firms. Gandhi was due
to meet Congress leaders later on Thursday night to discuss
forming a government. The party quickly reiterated that
it was as committed as Vajpayee to forging peace with old
Pakistan. A spokeswoman said Congress had "always held that
the only way to resolve issues with our neighbours is through
dialogue". Congress was written off before the poll, which
Vajpayee called early to cash in on a surging economy, good
monsoons and peace prospects with Pakistan. But strong campaigning
by the Gandhis, who drew massive crowds, and resentment
that the benefits of growth and economic reforms were not
reaching ordinary Indians, revived the party.
The
BJP, stung and hurt, kept a dignified face as it announced
that it accepted the people's verdict. "We accept whatever
verdict the people have given us. After all the results
are declared we will discuss, statewise, whatever local
issues that have led to the defeat," BJP general secretary
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told a news conference in New Delhi.
Congress' gains, defying poll forecasts the BJP would remain
the largest party in parliament, appears to firm Sonia Gandhi's
claim to the prime ministership, despite her Italian birth.
The BJP, till yesterday harping on Sonia's foreign origin,
not surprisingly, chose to keep mum on their pet issue.
"We will not go against the verdict of the people," Naqvi
added. Vajpayee's BJP and its allies lost more than a hundred
seats in the 545-member parliament. According to the latest
tallies, Congress and its allies were leading in 223 constituencies
and the BJP-led coalition in 189. The left was ahead in
about 60. Several government ministers, including Foreign
Minister Yashwant Sinha, have lost. However, the BJP thanked
the voters for their cooperation. "We want to thank the
people of this country who came out in large numbers to
vote and we accept their verdict," Naqvi said. Nearly 370
million votes were cast on electronic machines over the
phased three-week poll. Financial markets, which had tumbled
on fears that Vajpayee would squeak back at the head of
an unstable coalition, reversed early losses as the size
of the Congress win became clear. The rupee ended up nearly
one percent from the day's low and the benchmark Bombay
stock index closed 0.77 percent higher.
Analysts
said markets were pleased that the Congress appeared to
have won a clear victory and there was little chance of
instability in government. Vajpayee, 79, put the BJP's hardline
Hindu agenda on the backburner and campaigned heavily on
a strong economy, low interest rates and the prospects of
peace with nuclear-armed Pakistan after they came close
to war two years ago. But the economic benefits have failed
to reach the hundreds of millions living in crushing poverty
in rural India, where electricity, jobs and clean water
are still luxuries. And it was ruralites who turned out
to vote in decisive numbers, not the burgeoning middle class
that has been the main winner from the boom, cheap loans
and an opening economy. The vote count on Thursday was the
culmination of a mammoth logistics effort across the world's
second most populous country, where more than 670 million
people were eligible to vote. Polling was held in five stages
over three weeks to allow time to move one million officials
and tens of thousands of police and troops around the almost
700,000 polling stations.
Congress will choose CLP leader tomorrow:
Sonia (Go
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New
Delhi: The elected Congress MPs will elect their leader
at the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting tomorrow
and that leader will most likely be the next prime minister,
Congress president Sonia Gandhi said today late in the evening.
She was addressing press persons after a Congress Working
Committee (CWC) meeting. Replying to a question that shouldn't
the leader of the largest party become the next prime minister,
a confident-looking Sonia said, "aise hi hota hai (it has
been a normal course in the past)." To another similar question
that whether the CLP whether, who would be chosen tomorrow,
would become the next prime minister, she gave the same
answer.
Earlier, Sonia, the PM-in-the-waiting, thanked the countrymen
for voting in favour of her party. "I thank the voters across
the country for reposing confidence in the Congress," she
added. Appearing before a huge media gathering she said
the people have voted against the BJP and believed in the
Congress' policies. Amidst utter confusion she was heard
saying: "I can't hear you......please ask questions one
by one."
Mulayam wins more seats, but loses bargaining
power (Go
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New
Delhi: Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav might
be in a catch-22 situation whether to or not to celebrate
the Lok Sabha polls results. If one goes by the number of
seats he won, it seems impressive. But he seems to be losing
grip at the Centre politics with the Congress and its allies
positioned comfortably. Mulayam is likely to win at least
33 seats in UP, up from his former tally of 26. And, if
his pre-poll ally Ajit Singh-led Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD)
is added, his tally is likely to touch 40. But, in case
of power play at the Centre, he seems to have suffered a
drubbing and considerably lost his bargaining power. Reason
being, the Congress, its allies plus the Left Front are
likely to comfortably reach the magic figure of 272. It
is the Communists who did greatest damage to the SP. Compared
to the dissolved Lok Sabha, the Communists have done fairly
well thereby winning at least 22 more seats.
The second reason for the SP being out of power play at
the Raisina Hills is the unexpected impressive performance
by the Congress. The party on its own is likely to get nearly
170 seats. Meanwhile, as permutations and combinations for
forming the next government have begun in the Capital, Mulayam
Singh Yadav and his man Friday Amar Singh said that let
what may come across, nobody could ignore their party. "Out
party was crucial in defeating the communal forces in UP,
and this is the reason nobody can afford to ignore us completely,"
UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh said while addressing a
press conference in Lucknow. Replying to a question if his
party would be a constituent of the next alliance at the
Centre, Amar Singh, in the Capital, said, "right from the
very beginning the antigonism was from the Congress. We
have always been of the opinion of being friends of the
Congress." Meanwhile, to chalk out its future strategy,
SP has called its party's executive meeting tomorrow at
11 a.m. at the party headquarters in New Delhi, and then
its parliamentary board meeting at 2 p.m. Mulayam Singh
said he would also meet his pre- poll ally Ajit Singh tomorrow
in the Capital.
Communists set to play a key role (Go
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New
Delhi: India's largest communist party said on Thursday
it could support a likely new Congress government. General
secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Harkishen
Singh Surjeet told reporters in the national capital New
Delhi that the Congress has the mandate of the people to
form a government as the people have rejected the policies
of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). "They have got
the right as Congress party has won. I say it is people's
verdict that the BJP be removed. No single man can say I
am the champion of that," he said.
CPI-M, India's largest left-wing group which looks set to
win at least 36 seats has said it supports a Congress-led
government, although this would not necessarily mean formally
joining the coalition. Surjeet said that decision on joining
the coalition would be taken only after a meeting on Friday.
"This matter we have to discuss in the central committee
meeting which we have called tomorrow. We will discuss that
matter what we can do about that," Surjeet said.
Vote tallies from a majority of states show Vajpayee's BJP-led
coalition suffering a stunning defeat to the opposition
Congress party, which has attacked his "India shining" campaign
as smug and elitist. In their best performance in years,
leftist parties are leading in 63 of parliament's 545 seats
as counting continues in the world's largest democracy,
where the pro-reform BJP appears about to be thrown out
of power.
Shares up as Congress sweeps to power
(Go
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Mumbai:
Indian shares rose 0.8 percent on Thursday, after swinging
in a range of more than 350 points, as investors cautiously
welcomed the anticipated formation of a stable government
by the Congress party. Recovering from a four percent plunge
in early trade, the 30- share Bombay index provisionally
closed up 1.23 percent, before final trades were settled
and the index officially ended 0.77 percent ahead at 5,399.47
points. Traded volumes rose to a hefty 166 million shares,
compared with Wednesday's 109 million. Gainers outpaced
losers 870 to 641. Fears that the election might lead to
a hung parliament had pounded the Bombay index to a five-month
low earlier this week. "The original people for the reforms
were Congress, it was Mr. Manmohan Singh (former finance
minister) who started opening up the economy. Markets have
no problem with Congress," market analyst Ashok Ajmera said
in financial-hub Mumbai.
Vajpayee quits (Go
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New
Delhi: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Thursday
met President APJ Abdul Kalam to hand over his resignation.
He drove to Rashtrapati Bhavan after a Cabinet meeting to
give in his papers. The President's press secretary says
Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's resignation was accepted
and he was asked to remain until new government is formed.
Earlier, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said
that Atal Bihari Vajpaye will be the leader of Opposition
in the Lok Sabha. Emerging from the hour-long Cabinet meeting,
she said Vajpayee will be the leader of the BJP as well
as NDA.
"We
have lost the elections but not the determination.......we
will continue to serve the nation. Winning and losing are
a part of life," a grim-looking Vajpayee said while addressing
the nation telecast at 10 p.m. Vajpayee said that he gave
a stable government for six years at a time when there was
a great degree of stability. He further said that today
India had emerged as a strong nation "compared to 1998 when
I had come to power". Apparently speaking about Jammu and
Kashmir, he said, "I tried to resolve the contentious issues
through consensus and I thank for the people of the state
for giving their support and rejecting terrorism." About
Indo-Pak relations, he said his government was successful
in initiating a peaceful dialogue with the neighbouing country.
