The Congress-JD(S) combine in Karnataka has been a disaster: Dr Shastri

New Delhi, May 23: The mandate is for Narendra Modi again and these elections have shown that it was a strong leadership that has taken the party forward. The Congress would have plenty of soul searching to do and the big challenge would be to its leadership.

Dr Sandeep Shastri, leading political scientist says that it is the leadership that has played a very important role for the BJP. In a direct fight with the Congress, the BJP has done exceptionally well, he tells OneIndia.

It is equally a strong reflection of the dismal failure of the Congress party. The only political groups that have withstood the BJP are the regional parties such as the DMK and YSRCP.

In West Bengal, where the BJP has put up a very impressive performance, it is clear that the votes of the Left and Congress have been transferred. The votes of both these parties have channelised in a big way to the BJP, he also says.

Coming to Uttar Pradesh, the SP-BSP tie up has not worked to that extent it was expected. However, it cannot be said that the experiment has not worked at all. The SP and BSP are leading in at least 20 seats. While it has not been a total failure, it can be said that the experiment has not worked to the extent it was expected.

In Punjab, the Congress has done well only thanks to Amarinder Singh and his leadership. This in fact throws up a serious question about the central leadership of the Congress party. The party will have to do some soul searching as the estimates now show that the party is not crossing the 60 mark. The big question is do they have the capacity to offer a strong challenge to the BJP.

In Karnataka, the Congress-JD(S) combine has been a disaster. It now poses a serious challenge to the government itself as it is on a shaky ground. The entire northern part of Karnataka has been swept by the BJP. The only concerns for the BJP are in Bangalore rural, north and central. The Congress would have to look at a whole new strategy now as its government in Karnataka looks extremely shaky, Dr Shastri also says.