Modi hits right electoral notes: Chandigarh, Maharashtra shrug off note recall woes

Those who were surprised that despite long queues, there had been no popular backlash against demonetization may have received some answers from the results of the recent civic body elections. Held in Maharashtra and Chandigarh, the comfortable victories acquired by the BJP in these two places, and the hostile reception accorded to UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav by spectators, who had come to cheer the junior hockey team in Lucknow on Friday, summed up the positive mood amidst the public for the saffron party.

The civic body elections are a shot in the arm for the BJP in the run up to the crucial assembly elections in UP and Punjab. Across the country, as DNA reporters have been finding out, despite inconveniences, people still believed PM Modi's act would spark magic and rid the country of corruption.

Speaking after the victory, BJP MP from Chandigarh and actor Kirron Kher, said demonetization was a "vote winner for her party and expected this perception to continue during the UP and Punjab polls."

These victories come at a welcome time as BJP MPs as well as its allies were getting apprehensive about the note ban. On Tuesday, Rajya Sabha BJP MP Swapan Dasgupta had criticised his own government for changing its stance yet again on the depositing of old notes. Dasgupta was not alone. BJP ally and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, an early supporter of the move, expressed worry, saying there was no end in sight to the crisis brought about by the massive cash crunch.

With Chandigarh having no assembly, the council elections are indicative of the urban mood. There were a total of 26 wards out of which BJP won 20 seats and its ally the Shrimoni Akali Dal (SAD) winning one seat. Congress's presence was reduced to only four wards even as three former Congress mayors faced defeat. The BSP failed to make a mark and one seat was won by a BJP rebel who contested independently.

Post the result, Prime Minister Modi tweeted to thank the people of Chandigarh for supporting the SAD-BJP alliance. "This shows the importance people attach to good governance," he tweeted.

Local issues had taken a back-seat in these polls, as demonetization had become the key poll plank for the parties. Congress tried to cash in on demonetization woes being faced by the people and called these elections a "litmus test for the BJP", while the BJP highlighted how the move would help the common man by weeding out corruption.

Setting the tone for these polls, BJP president Amit Shah had addressed a mega rally in Chandigarh in November where he had urged people "to vote in the name of Modi." Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur, BJP National Spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain also addressed several rallies in different wards.

The aggressive campaign executed by the BJP worked in its favour and the party upped the ante by inviting star campaigners including Bhojpuri singer-actor and North-East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari and Bhagat Singh Koshyari, singer Hans Raj Hans and former Uttarakhand CM to woo voters from all communities.

In contrast, the Congress had registered its second poorest performance in the civic polls after 1996 when it won only one seat. Infighting in the party was also to blame as some leaders alleged that they had been sidelined. The rift came out in the open when Congress leader Manish Tiwari openly criticized former Chandigarh MP from Congress, Pawan Kumar Bansal. The manifesto was also released only a day before the election.

Some 700 kms away in the 'city of nawabs', UP CM Akhilesh Yadav, while presiding the award ceremony at the the most successful men's Junior World Cup Hockey tournament, faced hostile crowds chanting "Modi, Modi". It was a big embarrassment for Yadav who had spent as much as Rs 100 crore on building two world class hockey turfs.

Earlier, the UP CM had decided to devote more than two hours to witness the final match between India and Belgium on Sunday evening. And his presence seemed to have boosted the morale of Indian colts, who went on to create history by reclaiming the trophy after a gap of 15 years.

But what followed afterwards was a complete shocker to not only the organisers but also to the entire government machinery present there. As Akhilesh begun to speak, the 18,000-plus crowd started chanting "Modi, Modi". Yadav got embarrassed for a moment but like a true politician, he didn't let this affect his speech.

The atmosphere did improve once Yadav distributed the prizes and the same crowd did appreciate his government's successful organisation of the tournament with huge applause in between the announcements. But there was no denying that apart from the players, Modi was the star here too.