BJP surges on Modi, Cong flounders, Nitish jolted

BJP surges on Modi, Cong flounders, Nitish jolted Saffrons Bag 6/6 in Guj, TMC Keeps Howrah TIMES NEWS NETWORK  New Delhi: The Lok Sabha and assembly bypoll results in four states offer no cheer to Congress, deliver a boost to Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, bring succour to Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee and present Bihar CM Nitish Kumar with a reality check.     Wednesday’s standout result was BJP’s clean sweep of two LS and six assembly seats in Gujarat. Modi immediately hailed the victories as a signal that Congress’s time in office is up. As the assembly seats were held by Congress,  they amplify BJP’s success.     Congress’s continued poor run will give the Opposition a leg-up ahead of the monsoon session of Parliament where it may be even less inclined to cooperate with the government. The poor results shrink Congress’s political capital, impacting its capacity for unilateralism.     The ruling party may not have the stomach for bold decisions on issues like Telangana and reforms as it will now have to focus on crucial elections in major states like Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.     Now, BJP holds 17 of Gujarat’s 26 LS seats and the results are bound to resonate at the meeting of the party’s national executive in Goaover the weekend where the debate over projecting Modi as PM is likely to crop up.     Congress turncoat Vitthal Radadia’s thumping win in Porbandar, hometown of Congress state chief Arjun Modhwadia, points to the party’s reduced fortunes. Spurred by a rising hype over Modi, BJP has reiterated its dominance in Gujarat.     Modi and Nitish Kumar were in Delhi on Wednesday at a meeting of CMs where they did not exchange a word.     The Bihar CM did not offer any reaction to rival RJD retaining the Maharajganj LS seat with a 137,000-vote margin.     RJD nominee Prabhunath Singh’s win is seen as a cause for some concern for Kumar, although the seat had been held by the rival camp. In 2009, RJD had scraped through on less than 3,000 votes.     It may, however, be premature to read the Bihar result solely as a result of Kumar’s growing estrangement with the BJP. The constituency has a good presence of upper castes with Rajputs backing the RJD nominee. The area is influenced by controversial former MP Shahbuddin and Yadavs continue to back Lalu Prasad.     In fact, some observers maintain, Janata Dal(U) might have benefitted had BJP put up a candidate as this could have split the Rajput and Bhumihar support for RJD in this election.  BYPOLL BOOST FOR BJP & MODI LOK SABHA Porbandar | BJP Vitthal Radadia defeats Cong candidate by 1.34 lakh votes Sabarkantha | BJP Haribhai Chaudhary defeats Cong’s Krishna Gadhvi by over 71 000 votes Maharajganj | RJD | RJD’s Prabhunath Singh defeats P K Shahi of JD(U) by 1.37 lakh votes Howrah (WB) | Trinamool | Prasun Banerjee beats CPM’s Sridip Bhattacherje by 27,000 votes  Assembly Dhoraji (GUJ) | BJP Pravin Mankadia defeats Cong’s Haribhai Patel by 11,497 votes Morva Hadaf (GUJ) | BJPNimisha Suthar defeats Cong’s Bhupendrasinh Khant by 17,716 votes Jetpur (GUJ) | BJPRadadia’s son Jayesh defeats Cong’s Jagdish Pambhar by 52,910 votes Limbadi (GUJ) | BJPKiritsinh Rana defeats Cong’s Satish Patel by 24,787 votes Yavatmal (MAHA) | Cong Nandini Parvekar defeats BJP’s Madan Yerawar by 15,233 votes Cong continues to lose ground in major states  New Delhi: On the whole, BJP is not seen to have been a significant factor while Prabhunath Singh – a controversial leader – is a heavy weight.     The Maharajganj outcome may not influence Kumar’s resolve to leave NDA if Modi is projected as the PM as it is not seen as a reflection of the JD(U)-BJP rift. But the results do underline the need for Kumar to account for discontent among influential caste groups like Bhumihars and tone up the state administration.     The failure of JD(U) candidate P K Shahi, a Bhumihar, to receive the support of his caste indicates that Kumar will need to re-calibrate his election strategy to account for a four-cornered contest in which he must grab a sizeable section of the minority vote.     The Bihar result brought cheer to Lalu Prasad, but this does not necessarily mean he is on the comeback trail. A more splintered vote where BJP puts up its nominee can spell trouble for him. At the same time, he can bask in his moment of success, particularly in the light of a large victory margin