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The electoral victory of the Mahagathbandhan in Bihar is a potentially regenerative moment for Indian democracy. The sacred ritual of an intensely contested election that enlists enormous civic energy is a riposte to all those who doubt the depth of Indian democracy. The election may have had worrying moments of divisive rhetoric. But in the end, voters made a calm and calculated choice, unswayed by attempts to polarise them. This is not a democracy that can be easily fooled.
One can unpack the election at many levels: The mathematical advantage the Mahagathbandhan had; the several micro stories in different regions of Bihar. But there is no question that this election was a vote against hubris and arrogance, two besetting sins in a democracy. Amit Shah’s poisonous and contemptuous statement that a vote for Nitish Kumar would be a cause for celebration in Pakistan was the most powerful manifestation of a sense that the BJP was not only insinuating hate but also expressing contempt for the voter. The voter has spoken back in turn. It is also an indication that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s sense of entitlement that his persona is enough to claim the voter’s allegiance has been broken. Admittedly, this was a state election. But it is an indication that even on development results on the ground, the Modi government’s record is not decisively compelling.
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