Hope and glory for Congress
Voters in state elections bolster parties outside the national coalition
MAY 10th was a good day for India's opposition parties. Congress, the main foe of the ruling national coalition, unseated local governments in Assam and Kerala. It now controls 12 of 35 states and territories. Jayaram Jayalalitha, a former actress, trounced the government of Tamil Nadu, proving that a corruption conviction need not dim charisma. The Communists will extend their rule of West Bengal to nearly 30 years after winning their sixth straight election there. These parties could, conceivably, gang up on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which heads the 17-member National Democratic Alliance (NDA) that runs the country at the national level.
This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Hope and glory for Congress”
From the May 19th 2001 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Asia
Can Donald Trump maintain Joe Biden’s network of Asian alliances?
Discipline and creativity will help, but so will China’s actions
What North Korea gains by sending troops to fight for Russia
Resources, technology, experience and a blood-soaked IOU
Is Arkadag the world’s greatest football team?
What could possibly explain the success of a club founded by Turkmenistan’s dictator
After the president’s arrest, what next for South Korea?
Some 3,000 police breached his compound. The country is dangerously divided
India’s Faustian pact with Russia is strengthening
The gamble behind $17bn of fresh deals with the Kremlin on oil and arms
AUKUS enters its fifth year. How is the pact faring?
It has weathered two big political changes. What about Donald Trump’s return?