By Ruma Dubey

The power of the people can create history and India too is at the cusp of writing a new history. Congress is decimated and the victory of BJP has surpassed all Exit Polls. BJP alone, as a single party has crossed the all important 272 mark. Modi is our new Prime Minister.

The victory of BJP/NDA was a given but no one in their wildest dreams had expected this kind of complete win. This kind of win for one single party is a loud voice for a complete change; people across the country voted single mindedly for Modi and his victory was through BJP – yes, one can say that this was a Presidential election. The fantastic sweep in UP, Delhi, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Uttarakhand left so many big leaders completely defeated.

Mayawati has till now come with a zero and this is truly a shocker. MNS too not being able to gain a single seat is once again people’s verdict against divisive politics.  The defeat of DMK is also a verdict against corruption. Nandan Nilekeni was also defeated and one had hoped that he would head back to Infosys but he has spoken to the media and said that he will continue to remain in politics and work for development of Bangalore. If only Kejriwal had not run away from Delhi, then AAP could have played a bigger role; today it remains just another party. The complete defeat of the Left in West Bengal is shocking and somehow, for us living in metros, having witnessed the volatile and often immature behavior of Mamata Banerjee, the clean sweep victory of TMC is very difficult to fathom – obviously she is doing something right there which we are not able to see. AIADMK’s victory is understandable as Amma has indeed done a lot of development in Tamil Nadu. Arun Jaitley has lost and it would be interesting to see how he would not fit into Modi’s Cabinet. The total defeat of Congress in Mumbai does not come as a surprise; rushing through projects only because elections were approaching is something which Mumbaities will not forgive. Surprisingly, the Adarsh scam is what started the fall the Congress though the kingpin of the scam, Ashok Chauhan seems to be winning in Nanded. His victory is not right if this fight was against corruption. The loss of Jagan Reddy truly makes one feel that people have indeed voted with their head and not their heart!

The victory of BJP is actually people saying that enough is enough against corruption, inflation and poor governance.  This is also a victory against caste as for the first time, UP has emerged out of the vortex of Muslim and Dalit votes. BJP’s win also shows that unlike what majority of intellectuals thought – Muslims too have come out and voted for Modi; after all India has the second largest population of Muslims in the world. And this in a true sense is a bigger victory for BJP and Modi.

This election is also about voting for hope – Modi has shown us all the dream of a vibrant India, an India where the youth will get employment, where there will be growth; can we say it will be corruption free? Now, that would seem too tall even for Modi!

It would be interesting to see how foreign policy pans out under Modi, especially Pakistan and yes, the big question in everyone’s mind – will America finally grant Modi an A1 visa? 

It is a victory which is so overwhelming that it is difficult to get a sense of the internal dynamics of this victory. The huge population of youth, which probably swung fairly decisively to the Right, believing that the Gujarat Model can be replicated all over the country is what led to this landslide victory.

Look at the leaders who have won and it is clear this time that people have come out and voted for only those who have worked. A lot of the dynasties have been defeated and in a real sense that is a true victory.

Call it the power of the youth or the vote for change or vote against corruption and dynasty – Indian democracy has created history.

Let us celebrate this win over the next two days and then worry on Monday about the daunting tasks which lay ahead for Modi.

For updates on who won and who lost, this is the best site for follow-up without the cacophony of the TV anchors and panels - http://eciresults.nic.in/statewiseS24.htm?st=S24