NE Poll Verdict
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: March 02, 2013 -
Now the verdict of the Assembly elections in the three Northeastern States of Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya is out. And the message is loud and clear.
All the ruling parties in the three Northeastern States stormed back to remain at the helm of power in their respective States.
In Tripura, Communist Party of India (Marxist) won an overwhelming majority of votes for a record fifth time in a row.
This time, the party has done even better by three notches up than its performance in the last 2008 Assembly elections by securing 49 seats in the 60-member State Assembly.
In Nagaland, the ruling Naga People's Front (NPF), despite its wavering stand from 'no election without Naga solution' to 'no election before Naga solution', has achieved its third electoral victory, winning 38 seats in the 60-member House to remain saddle in power.
Similarly, in Meghalaya, the ruling Congress party-led coalition has won 37 of the State Assembly's 60 seats with Congress alone securing 29 seats, which is four more seats than what it could gather in the last 2008 Assembly election.
So, all the ruling parties have done well and the stage now set for the respective ruling parties and their coalition partners to remain active as ever in deciding the fate of the people in the three Northeastern States for the next five years.
Interestingly, in the run up to the just concluded Assembly elections in the three Northeastern States of Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, political parties of every colour and flag touted the people saying that the electoral rights bestowed upon them after every five years to elect a new Government is a rare opportunity not to be missed for bringing about change and development in their respective States.
So, change and development was the one common election mantra that one could not fail to miss at every election rally whether it was in the 'muscle and money' power crazed-Nagaland, or in the Red-addicted Tripura or in Meghalaya, where politics has been more aptly described as a game of musical chairs for the power obsessed Congress party leaders.
However, the results of the elections in the three Northeastern States, which were declared on February 28, have clearly indicated that instead of testing waters, the people are satisfied with maintaining status quo.
Does this mean that the people are not ready for change and development in their respective States?
How far the pro-incumbency factor plays its role in the popularity of the ruling parties in these States?
These are some of the questions that have spawned up from an analysis of the just announced election results in Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, where the electoral behavior appears to be no different from elsewhere in the region in the absence of an alternative option.
So sad, but so true.
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