| Bharatkumar Raut |
His belief that Modi’s candidature will lead to “more loss than gain” is not different from the Congress argument that “Modi would actually work in our favour, because of the counter-mobilisation around us of minorities who now support regional and other formations.”
If elections are to be seen as a fight amongst individuals, the facts are as follows: in Karnataka, where Modi campaigned, the BJP lost 12 seats; the Congress gained eight seats in places where Rahul Gandhi went. It would possibly be poor analysis to reduce complexities to a showdown between individuals, but since Modi pitches himself as the BJP’s great hope, he has opened himself up to an examination of individual performance. As of now, there is no evidence that the BJP has fared better where Modi has gone outside Gujarat. Yet, it is expected that in the future he will get great support from aspirational urban India disappointed with the UPA. Relatively urbanised Karnataka was not impressed. In Maharashtra, too, the Shiv Sena now says he won’t make a difference.
