New Delhi: It is a defeat in victory for four regional parties along the east coast of India. The performances of the AIADMK, TRS, BJD and TMC have been very impressive in the election. They can proudly say that they have successfully taken on the BJP in their states and won three-fourth of the seats. But, they will have to sit in the opposition for the next five years.
Together they have won almost a hundred Lok Sabha seats, but the BJP-led NDA does not need them. The only solace is that they are in power in their respective states. The TMC and AIADMK have been in power in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
Naveen Patnaik-led BJD has won Odisha Assembly election for the fourth consecutive term and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) has won the first ever Assembly election in the new state Telangana, which will officially come into existence on June 2.
All four players were hoping that they would get an opportunity to play a bigger role at the Centre after the results. But, the Narendra Modi wave in rest of India has hit them hard.
Two out of four parties TRS and AIADMK may even extend outside support to the NDA, even though NDA does not need it. It may help these two parties to get more central assistance for their states. Mamata Banerjee and Naveen Patnaik would prefer to sit in the opposition as they don't want to align with the BJP.
Or, all four of them can join hands to form a common opposition front to the NDA. It can make the Congress irrelevant at the Centre.
Tamil Nadu
After playing a 'hide and seek' game with the BJP, Jayalalithaa went to polls alone. She has done remarkably well. The Jaya 'tsunami' has decimated the DMK, Congress and BJP-led alliance in the state.
She has proved that she is the undisputed queen of Tamil Nadu politics. According to people close to her, Jayalalithaa was ready to extend support to Narendra Modi-led NDA. She was high on the priority list of the BJP. But a convincing victory of the BJP has made Jayalalithaa irrelevant in national politics.
West Bengal
The TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has decimated the CPM-led Left Front in her state. For the first time, the Left has not been able to win even a single seat. With this debacle, its totally tally in the Lok Sabha has gone down to a single digit. It is truly a moment of great joy and fulfillment for 'didi'.
But, she won't be in a position to dictate any terms to the Centre. She has already burnt bridges with Narendra Modi making a strong personal attack on him. Like Jayalalithaa, she will continue to rule her state and will be a major opposition figure in New Delhi.
Telangana
The biggest gainer is TRS. The gamble has paid off. KCR has won both Assembly and Lok Sabha in the newly created state. He will be the first chief minister of Telangana. The TRS has won 12 out of 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state. It has also managed to come to power in the state on its own.
It is a well known fact that KCR was hoping to get some plum ministries at the Centre. Since his arch rival Chandrababu Naidu is already a part of the NDA, KCR may not be able to exercise any power at the Centre.
With his dozen MPs, he has to sit in the opposition.
Odisha
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has surprised everybody by registering his fourth consecutive victory in the assembly election. It is a landslide victory for him in the Assembly and a convincing victory in the Lok Sabha election.
According to his close aides, Naveen Patnaik was not averse to the idea of backing Modi led NDA government. Patnaik was hoping that the NDA would fall short of a majority mark by 30-40 seats.
Since his hopes have been dashed, he too will have to sit in the opposition.
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