BJP upbeat ; Cong says anti-incumbency cause of defeat

New Delhi, Feb 27 (UNI) As the SAD-BJP alliance today stormed to power in Punjab and the BJP was on the threshold of picking up Uttarakhand, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Congress' defeat in the two states would have no bearing on the Centre since it was not a ''referendum'' against the UPA.

An upbeat BJP described the party's win in the assembly elelctions in Punjab and Uttarakhand as a vote against the Centre's UPA government's economic policies and the politics of appeasement practicised by the Congress and its allies.

Amid speculation that a wave of public anger against soaring prices swept away the Congress, Dr Singh said the government was trying to bring down the prices of essential commodities.

BJP President Rajnath Singh expressed happiness over the poll outcome and said the party's electoral success in Punjab and Uttarakhand was according to its ''expectations.'' The Left, the Congress' ally at the Centre, also trained its guns on the embattled ruling party, saying runaway inflation, reckless privatisation and sale of farmers' land led to its debacle.

Senior BJP leader Maj Gen (retd) BC Khanduri, who was head of the election affairs in Uttarakhand, ascribed his party's good performance in the state to ''total absence of governance and prevalence of rampant corruption during the Congress rule''.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Narayan Datt Tiwari and PCC chief Harish Rawat conceded defeat in the state's second-ever assembly election, terming the adverse mandate as an expression of the people's will.

SAD supremo Parkash Singh Badal, who is set to take reins of the government in Punjab for the fourth time, profusely thanked the voters who had come out in record 76 per cent to exercise their frachise inspite of continuous showers.

''It was popular verdict against the autocratic rule of Capt Singh and not just an anti-incumbency vote,'' said the octagenarian SAD patriarch.

Capt Amarinder Singh said Congressmen needed to introspect about the reasons of the defeat.

Former Haryana Chief Minister and INLD supremo Om Prakash Chautala hailed the victory of the Shiromani Akali Dal(SAD) in Punjab and BJP in Uttarakhand and said it would have an impact on the Centre.

Talking to UNI, he said the defeat of the Congress in Punjab and Uttarakhand would snowball into the formation of the third front at the Centre. The Congress was also poised to perform miserably in the forthcoming elections in Uttar Pradesh, he added.

The Congress said anti-incumbency was one of the main reasons for the party's debacle in the hustings.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi described Congress defeat in Punjab and Uttarakhand as ''peoples verdict'' against the poor governance of the party-led UPA government.

He said people were totally disappointed by the UPA government's failure in tackling major issues confronting the general public.

Mr Modi said ''it is a verdict against the central government's failure in checking inflation, vote bank politics and security of the masses and country''.

Rajasthan Bharatiya Janata Party president Dr Mahesh Shamra attributed the defeat of the Congress in the two states of Punjab and Uttarakhand to the wrong policies of the UPA government.

He said the UPA government policies lead to sky rockting prices made the life of the common man difficult, policy of appeasement, failure on the part of the government to control terrorism and Naxalism were some of the reasons for the stunning defeat of the Congress in these strong holds.

BJP general secretary Gopinath Munde said with the Congress' defeat in Uttarakhand, it has become evident that the 'charisma' of its president Sonia Gandhi was over.

UNI