ABSTRACT
Rajasthan paper argues that a pro-incumbency sentiment, immense popularity of Narendra Modi and well-oiled party machinery enabled the BJP to sweep the elections in Rajasthan. What also helped the BJP were the following factors: non-acceptability of Rahul Gandhi as a leader, factionalism within the Congress and failure of the party organisation to generate an effective anti-incumbency mood among the voters. The BJP through strategic alliances and effective social engineering plugged its weak points whereas the Congress suffered because of misperceived estimation of its strength by its state level leaders. The authors argue that the remarkable triumph of the BJP has tweaked the bipolarity of political contestation in the state in favour of the BJP. The party has made deep inroads into areas which were traditional bastions of the Congress and has similarly captured those social spaces which till recently were pledged to the Congress. With a formidable presence in the State Assembly, backed up by a powerful team of state-based parliamentarians, aggressive governance at the Centre and hyper active party organisation, the BJP in Rajasthan did not give the appearance of a party which was out of power in the state.
The BJP also has reasons to worry in the state. The forced ‘transfer’ of Vasundhra Raje to national politics as the national Vice President of the BJP has left the party without a leader who has state-wide acceptability. A bitter power struggle ensued within the party over the issue of the appointment of the new state chief. This was an outcome of the tussle between central leadership and the Raje-led faction in the state. The party, however, has sufficient time to regroup and consolidate. It will thus be interesting to see how political competition unfolds itself in the coming times in Rajasthan.
