Mixed bag in NE

Voters of three northeastern states that recently went to the polls have largely reposed faith in the ruling parties/alliances. The BJP and its allies have managed to retain Tripura and Nagaland, even as the saffron party has fallen short in its ambitious bid to make big inroads into Meghalaya. Among the three states, the electoral battle in Tripura was regarded as the most significant as the BJP was pitted against the Congress-CPM alliance as well as a new entrant, the Tipra Motha Party. In the 2018 elections, the BJP and its local ally had stormed the Left stronghold with a thumping victory. This time, the BJP-led combine’s performance was just good enough to retain power. The fact that the Congress and the Left failed to oust the BJP despite joining hands is bad news for the Opposition, which is trying to regroup a year ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The Tipra Motha Party not only made its presence felt but also dented Congress-CPM prospects, thereby paving the way for the BJP’s triumph.

In Nagaland, the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party has emerged on top; the BJP, in a junior role, has done fairly well. It’s in Meghalaya that the BJP has reason to be disappointed with its electoral show. The party had parted ways with the National People’s Party (NPP) before the polls. The BJP’s tirade against NPP leader and Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, whom it had accused of running the ‘most corrupt’ state government in the country, has gone in vain. Adding insult to injury, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) has outshone the BJP in Meghalaya.

The NE poll results are a fresh setback for the Congress, which had suffered embarrassing losses in Punjab and Gujarat last year. The single largest party in the 2018 Meghalaya polls has tamely ceded Opposition space to the United Democratic Party and the TMC. The Congress, however, can take some consolation from the bypoll results of five other states, where it has won three seats out of six. Overall, the BJP continues to be a dominant force in the North-East, along with influential regional parties.