While Mr Shah’s leadership has come under a cloud, Mr Modi’s reported charisma and his ability to lead the party to electoral triumphs is now open to question. The Congress, that was virtually wiped out of Bihar, surprised even its harshest critics by bagging 27 seats.The rejection of the politics of polarisation was complete with the BJP-led NDA bagging only 58 seats and the Nitish-Lalu-Congress-led Grand Alliance sweeping the polls, winning 178 of 243 Assembly seats.The knives are clearly out in the BJP.7 per cent. The Grand Alliance registered an overall 41.9 per cent, with the RJD getting 18. This gamble boomeranged badly.Marginalising the state BJP leadership, the Modi-Shah combine had taken it upon themselves to win Bihar for the party. Iconic filmstar MP Shatrughan Sinha was the first to draw blood.RJD is biggest single party, Lalu may again call the shotsIt was a spectacular victory for the Nitish Kumar-Lalu Candle Light Yadav-led Grand Alliance and a resounding defeat for the Narendra Modi-Amit Shah-led BJP. From here, on the journey for Narendra Modi and Amit Shah is likely to be an arduous one. After its defeat in Delhi earlier this year, the crushing defeat in the Bihar elections seem to have taken wind out of the BJP’s chariot and sent saffronites led by Amit Shah scurrying for cover and introspection.8 per cent and Congress 6.Of the seven Independents and others elected, three are from the Left parties. BJP MP from Bihar R. The LJP, led by Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, and the RLSP of Upendra Kushwaha got two seats each. BJP general secretary and Swadeshi Jagran Manch leader Murlidhar Rao claimed both these leaders had "betrayed the BJP" and were the reason for the party’s defeat. "The issue of Bihari versus Bahri (outsider) has been settled once and for all," Mr Sinha said, firing directly at the Modi-Shah duo. Former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi won only one of the two seats he contested and his outfit, HAM, lost in all the other 19 seats it fought.It was a pathetic show by the BJP as the party on its own got just 53 seats out of the 157 it had contested, while its allies also put up a poor show. Mr Modi became the first Prime Minister in recent years to have addressed nearly 30 rallies in any Assembly poll.4 per cent, JD(U) 16.K.The Bihar outcome, experts feel, was a verdict against the politics of hate and the politics of polarisation, that the BJP top brass unabashedly unleashed during campaigning. Singh questioned the distribution of tickets by the party. Discarding its development plank, party leaders went into beef politics, talked of how Pakistan would celebrate a BJP defeat and how Nitish Kumar as CM was favouring Muslims over backward Hindus

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It was a tough trail towards the unknown — nobody having any idea where it would lead the party in its quest to re-establish itself. There is no shortage of people out to ridicule the party as an unwanted item from the past, the more charitable holding on to memories of its founder for antique value.That was one deterrent the experts pointed to — the lack of PPP votes in Punjab. However, provided that the young PPP leader has the stamina to carry on, he might be on to something here.It’s been a lopsided campaign. The difference between 2002 and 2018 is the PTI challenge now as opposed to the rather meek PML(Q)-PPP opposition then.In Lahore, as in Punjab overall, this is dull even by PML(N) standards.For others, the campaign may end in a few days from now. It sometimes seems as if Shahbaz Sahib is campaigning all by himself and even he is somehow lacking the confidence that was his trademark when he was in power.BBZ’s run in Punjab was far from ideal.The election is just a few days away. He should do it and then see what happens a few years down the road and not be too disappointed by the vote tally on July 25. To a large extent, their estimates are based on what they have seen during the election campaign, the past records of parties offering another very useful source to base their evaluations on.By arrangement with Dawn. A small spark to hang on to.The feeling amongst everyone is that the PML(N) voters will come out in large numbers to the surprise of all. There is, of course, an element of risk here, but that is a choice perhaps the PPP leadership has already China LED Bulb Light Series made.Surprisingly, to many, after Imran Khan, it is Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari who has run a campaign in this build-up to election that is worth the name.But then, it has to be said that during the tour of BBZ to Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, his party has generated more positive vibes through him than it has in the last five years put together. This is an assertion based on experience but at the same time the PML(N) leadership has to ensure that its own cadres do not fall prey to the impression. Now the party needs to find ways in which BBZ can maintain his presence in Punjab, building on material the two big parties, the PML(N) and PTI, cannot somehow accommodate in their schemes. Also, the PPP alleged that its chairman’s caravan was unfairly stopped at a couple of places — this being one instance among many that have been cited by those who describe the situation as far from being a level playing field. To Shahbaz Sharif who is at best aiming for a PML(N)-led coalition government, and at worst fighting for survival of the Sharif brand. It is a tiny light but light still with the promise to break the long spell of pitch darkness — so long as BBZ can control his urge to tip father dear as the next Prime Minister. A glimmer of hope. The others have not even come close to matching the speed and consistency of the Kaptaan. His speeches have been, as expected, caustic, a few sentences earning him a call from the Election Commission to explain his position. At times, the party appears to be caught between wanting to canvass vigorously and the belief that it stands no chance of winning this contest in Punjab against the PTI which is out to overwhelm the proceedings with its very loud and boisterous antics.That task should be left to the main contenders. His run has been relentless, and while there are perhaps areas he could not physically reach out to despite a desire to go there, he can be satisfied with what he has done. The realities that the PML(N) is faced with have led the party to undertake a very strange poll campaign.Many in Punjab have consigned the PPP to the dustbin of history.Someone has likened election 2018 to the general poll held in 2002 when the PML(N) was in a quandary but still managed to win many seats in Lahore, the most eagerly contested city which formed the basis of the PTI movement against rigging after the 2013 election. On the way, BBZ was bound to face challenges, the most serious of them posed by an almost complete erosion of PPP cadres in parts of Punjab.Imran Khan’s meetings have been well attended, generally, bar maybe one or two occasions where the crowd was rather thin. Many would say that he was desperately needed in Sindh, from where reports suggest that the PPP may be up against problems this time because of an alliance between the Grand Democratic Alliance and PTI. To Imran Khan who seemingly believes that he will form a government on his own after the July 25 election. His visit to interior Sindh was always on the cards but his tour of Punjab (and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa) against great odds has been noticed, even if it is not going to get the PPP enough votes where it can be considered a threat to domination of the PML(N) and PTI in the province. People have already decided who they are going to vote for. Analysts are trying to figure out who is going to win the contest. For BBZ, it has to continue well beyond that, until other general elections beckon. The other senior leaders of the PML(N) are there in the picture, some more active than the others but the overall picture is not one that fits a party which has so dominated Punjab politics over the last many years. It was thought that there was not enough potential in the biggest province for BBZ to waste his precious pre-poll time here, that too in the face of the security threat that is still there for some parties and their leaders. Some have written it off many times over

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