Wake-up call for Oppn ahead of LS polls: BJP bags MP, Raj, C'garh

New Delhi: The BJP swept Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh on Sunday inflicting a resounding defeat on the Congress to tighten its stranglehold in the Hindi heartland, in a big boost for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and setting the tone for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

In some consolation for the Congress in the face of the saffron wave after it lost Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, the party ousted the Bharat Rashtra Samiti(BRS) in Telangana to make it 3-1 for the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) in the latest round of Assembly elections billed as a semi-final before next year's poll showdown.

Counting of votes in Mizoram will be taken up on Monday.

"The results show popular support for our battle against corruption," Modi told a crowd of cheering supporters at the BJP headquarters here.

Ruling MP for 18 years, a well entrenched BJP managed to stave off anti-incumbency in a shot in the arm for four-time chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan and dashing the hopes of a resurgent Congress helmed by veteran and former CM Kamal Nath.

Winning 141 seats and leading in 24, the BJP got a simple majority and could get two-thirds majority in a House of 230. Congress bagged 45 and was leading in 19.

Suspense also mounted as to who will be the BJP's chief minister in any of the three Hindi heartland states. After the Congress' loss in three key states, rumblings have surfaced in the opposition bloc INDIA ahead of their meeting on December 6, with many leaders claiming that the grand old party ignored others, but was unable to win elections on its own.

"The poll results show the defeat of the Congress and the victory of the BJP. The Congress ignored other INDIA parties, but was unable to win on its own," said JD(U) leader K C Tyagi.

With BJP dislodging the Congress hit by factionalism in Rajasthan, the desert state stuck to a nearly 30-year-old 'rivaz' (tradition) of not voting an incumbent party back to power. The BJP got a majority bagging 115 seats after voting was held for 199 constituencies.

The Congress notched 69 seats The Chhattisgarh outcome was a surprise for many Congress leaders who were hoping for another stint in power in the state by fending off the BJP challenge.

The K Chandrashekhar Rao-led BRS hoped for a hattrick in Telangana but was dethroned by the Congress.

Anumula Revanth Reddy, a Lok Sabha MP who led the Congress' charge, could be the second chief minister of the state.The Congress won 61 seats and was leading in three in the 119-member House.

The BRS bagged 33 and was ahead in six. The BJP put up a good showing and increased its tally in the southern state with the victory of its candidate K Venkata Ramana Reddy in Kamareddy against both the outgoing chief minister KCR and Revanth Reddy, who is the TPCC chief, being the highlight.

Rumblings in INDIA bloc after Cong's poor poll show

With the Assembly poll results in three states being a disappointment for the Congress, some rumblings have begun among the constituents of the INDIA opposition bloc ahead of their meeting on December 6, with many leaders alleging that the grand old party ignored others, but was unable to win elections on its own.

While some opposition leaders, including Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar and Janata Dal-United's K C Tyagi, have asserted that the Congress's poll defeats in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan will have no impact on the alliance, some other leaders from the bloc have pointed out that the grand old party had distanced itself from the coalition partners.

BJP's Venkata Ramana Reddy 'giant killer' in T'gana

Kamareddy constituency BJP candidate Katipally Venkata Ramana Reddy has become the giant killer of the Telangana election, as he defeated outgoing Cm K Chandrasekhar Rao and PCC president A Revanth Reddy -- who could become the new CM -- on Sunday.

Venkata Ramana Reddy defeated KCR, his nearest rival, by 6,741 votes. Both KCR and Revanth Reddy had contested from other seats as well, in addition to Kamareddy, and won.

Win some, lose some: Jodo Yatra's electoral impact uneven

The Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra energised the Congress' rank and file but the jury is out on the impact it had on the states through which it passed with the party winning Karnataka in May and now Telangana while losing the Hindi-heartland states of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

Electorally, the yatra seems to have paid dividends in the south. However, the march does not seem to be helping the Congress in stopping the BJP surge in the Hindi-heartland. (PTI)