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India and China agree to united front on climate change

Indian Voters Back Congress in State Polls

By VIBHUTI AGARWAL and KRISHNA POKHAREL

NEW DELHI -- Voters in three Indian states handed the ruling Indian National Congress party and its ally victory in state elections that were being viewed as an early referendum on the performance of the national government since it began a new term in June.

Elections were held Oct. 13 in the western state of Maharashtra, which includes the financial and media capital Mumbai; Haryana in the north; and Arunachal Pradesh in the east. In all, the eligible voters in the three states totaled about 90 million, who chose representatives from 5,000 candidates. Election officials reported 60% voter turnout for Maharashtra, 73% for Haryana and 71% for Arunachal Pradesh.

"The victory will boost the morale of the Congress party," said Sanjay Kumar, a fellow at the Center for the Study of Developing Societies, a New Delhi-based think-tank. It could also prompt the party to accelerate economic reforms that it has pursued since coming to power in 2004, he added.

The Congress party which leads the national governing United Progressive Alliance coalition gained a majority of the seats in Arunachal and is poised to secure another term in office in Maharashtra in an alliance with the Nationalist Congress Party, an offshoot. It also gained the most seats of any party in Haryana but still fell short of a majority. Congress had been in effective control of all three states prior to the election.

The polls dealt another blow to the beleaguered Bharatiya Janata Party, the main national opposition which lost seats in the national parliament elections earlier this year and has been struggling since to redefine itself in a way that appeals to voters. It fared poorly in all three states Thursday and officials acknowledged the disappointing results. "The party will have to strategize how to strengthen and win elections in other important states over the next two years," said Nalin Kohli, national media convener for the Hindu nationalist party in New Delhi.

In Maharashtra, there have long been simmering tensions between native Maharashtrians and the millions of migrants who flock to the state for work, especially in Mumbai. The Shiv Sena, a party that criticizes migrants and seeks to keep jobs for locals, tallied 44 seats, well below its previous tally. The BJP polled 46 out of a total of 288. Congress and the NCP attracted voters in part because they were perceived as nonpartisan on the issue, securing 82 seats and 62 seats, respectively.

"Communalism has emerged as a big issue in Maharashtra, and Congress and NCP both are better positioned in that regard with their moderate approach," said Vidya Rao, professor at Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai.

A Maoist insurgency also has been brewing up in the state's southeastern region. Days before the elections, Maoist rebels killed 17 policemen in the area. On election day, the Naxals opened fire at a polling booth, scaring away voters and disrupting the vote but no major violence was reported.

Haryana is one of the most prosperous Indian states with thriving agriculture and industry. Some of India's largest automobile and auto parts manufacturers including Maruti Suzuki Ltd. have their production facilities there. For the voters in the state, the main issues in the election were development and high food prices, said Kuldeep Singh, 45-year-old, a factory worker in Gurgaon, the state's industrial hub.