State Assembly Elections in India-2011: West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Kerala

AbstractThe governments which worked are getting rewarded by being voted back to power, while those with poor record on developmental work have got the beating from the people. It is a clear indication that people instead of rhetoric, want 'economic growth' and 'good governance.' They have begun to measure their economic gain when they are in the process of selecting a political party and pressing the button at the polling booth. This is a good sign of further strengthening democratic process in India.Key words: State, India, elections, alliances, partyThe results of the five Assembly elections, held in April-May 2011 gave many a surprises. The most striking result was in West Bengal, where the CPI (M)-led LeftFront, which had been in office for a record 34 straight years, crumbled under the political assault of the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress- Congress alliance. This was more than mere anti-incumbency. The important message of these elections was that politicians can no longer take people for a ride. Except Assam, the results were dismal for the Congress as it suffered losses in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry and with a thin majority in Kerala. The BJP has much to ponder over the results of these elections as it fared badly everywhere. The writing on the wall was clear that voters discard the parties which do not address the fundamental concerns of the people. One of the important points in, these elections has been the proactive role of the Election Commission of India in containing the misuse of money power and official machinery by the incumbent parties.West Bengal:The 15th West Bengal Assembly elections were held on April 18 to May 10 in six phases. These elections recorded nearly 85 per cent polling which was highest ever in the state. The stage was set for a straight fight between the incumbent LeftFront, and the TMC-Congress alliance. The BJP contested the elections alone. Going by the trend witnessed during the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, the subsequent elections for local bodies and bye-elections, the outcomes for the Assembly elections were on expected lines. By winning 227 out of a total of 294 seats, the TMC-Congress combine reduced the LeftFront to mere 62 seats. Although the Mamata Banerjee led alliance got a decisive lead of nearly 7% over the LF in terms of vote share, the LeftFront still managed to secure 41% of total votes polled (Special Statistics..., 2011: 142).The loss for the LF was less in rural areas, however, it suffered a lot in the semi-urban and urban constituencies (Nayyar, 2011). Though the TMC alliance was ahead of the LF even in rural constituencies, but its lead was less in rural constituencies compared to urban constituencies. The punitive nature of the vote can be gauged from the fact that almost the entire council of ministers was wiped out. Bhattacharjee became the first CM since 1967 to lose his seat in the assembly (The Tribune, 2011, May 16). All over West Bengal, lightweight candidates, often first time contestants, defeated high-profile, heavyweight LeftFront leaders (Patnaik, 2011: 14). The Congress won 42 seats, increasing its tally by 21 since 2006. However there was a decline in its vote share. It was mainly due to the fact that while in 2006, it contested on almost all seats as it has no alliance with any other party. However in 2011, it contested a large chunk of seats to its major alliance partner, i.e., the TMC.Mamata Banerjee's win was taken mainly as a response to the failures of the LeftFront government, i.e., the anti-incumbency factor. Her agitation in Singur, which forced Tata Motors to shiftits prestigious small car project from the State, and the state repression in Nandigram in a movement against land acquisition, gave her a new lease of political life. She came to be seen as a protector of poor farmers (Sen, 2011: 62). It was rightly observed that the defeat of the LeftFront, is not just due to the peasant disaffection with its recent efforts at the land acquisition, but more due to widely and intensely resented all-pervasive and oppressive party control over all aspects of local life (Chattopadhyay, 2011: 16). …