Decisive mandates, different takeaways

The BJP-led Mahayuti has won a massive victory in the Assembly election in Maharashtra and the JMM-led I.N.D.I.A. bloc has secured a decisive win in Jharkhand. However, the two victories do not stand a political comparison. The landslide win of the Mahayuti has given a tremendous boost to the BJP at the national level and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, while the Jharkhand victory is poor consolation for the Opposition. Maharashtra is the country’s richest and one of its largest states and the victory there, coming in the wake of the emphatic victory in Haryana, has dispelled impressions of a weakened NDA. The impressions had arisen from the setbacks suffered by the BJP in the Lok Sabha election and its failure to win a majority on its own. The Maharashtra victory will help the Modi government to go ahead with its legislative and governance agenda inside and outside Parliament without bothering about the Opposition.

The BJP has won its most famous victory in Maharashtra and is close to a majority on its own in the Assembly. It worked hard for this, steadily increasing its legislative and political presence in the state over the years. It also tactically excelled, splitting the Shiv Sena and the NCP and taking them along. It implemented an effective electoral strategy consolidating castes and groups and making a winning combination of them. Most importantly, it rolled out welfare schemes, especially the Ladki Bahin scheme, which benefited women with cash payments. There was a 7% increase in women’s polling percentage and that could only have helped the Mahayuti. The voters also considered the Shiv Sena and the NCP factions allied with the Mahayuti more legitimate than their rivals. The alliance ran an effective campaign that took its message clearly to the electorate, and its appeal went home to all demographic, geographical, and social segments. In comparison, the MVA did not have a compelling message, struggled with coordination, and did not run a campaign that appealed to the voters.

The scenario was entirely different in Jharkhand where the JMM-led government had an upper hand in terms of its election issues, narratives, and campaign. The Hemant Soren government’s monthly payout scheme for women helped it just as a similar scheme helped the Mahayuti in Maharashtra. While the ruling alliance had its major support among the tribal population, it also drew support from other sections. The arrest and incarceration of Chief Minister Soren by the ED helped him earn sympathy which did turn into votes. The BJP’s campaign, built on the theme of infiltration of Bangladeshis and its communal overtones did not appeal to the voters. The I.N.D.I.A. victory in Jharkhand, beating anti-incumbency sentiments, is impressive in its scale and depth but does not dazzle like Mahayuti’s splendid run in Maharashtra.

Maharashtra Assembly poll 2024 results | Check constituency results here

Jharkhand Assembly poll 2024 results | Check constituency results here

Bypoll 2024 results | Check Karnataka results here

Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls took place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP went up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress tried to make their mark. Maha Yuti are currently comfortably poised to win. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faced a challenge after Hemant Soren's arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP, but look set to retain power with its I.N.D.I.A. allies. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.

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