The United Progressive Alliance Government at the Centre, which is left with less than a year in office before seeking a fresh mandate of the people, ought to draw three main conclusions from the Bhartiya Janata Party's first-ever victory in a state in the southern peninsula, which has jolted the Congress more than the others. The first is that disunity among progressive and secular forces has created enough space for religious parties to flourish and govern half-a-dozen major states. The second is that the Government has not been able to sell its policies and achievements to the voters, whether it is the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the farmer's loan waiver scheme and other yojanas which together account for an outgo of nearly Rs. 100,000 crores a year from the national exchequer, or the country's sustained and impressive economic growth rate. The third is that it has failed to project an image of cohesion and unity, ensure good governance free from corruption, or respond to the needs of and mitigate the hardship of, vulnerable section of the society which is the worst victim of uncontrolled inflation and social deprivation. Image-building exercises and catchy slogans do not feed and clothe people, who are mature enough to know whether or not their life has changed for the better or worse in the last four years, or only the rich business houses have become richer as a result of the much publicized liberalization policies which lack a human face. Owing to the attitude of the Left parties and constant in-fighting among the coalition partners, an impression has gone round that a divided government is least qualified to govern. The Left's opposition to the Indo-US nuclear deal, for whatever reasons, and the Government's failure to proceed with it and many other policy decisions, have created the impression of instability and lack of decision-making capacity at the Centre. There is a certain presumptuousness on the part of the political parties, particularly those ruling, that image-building can hoodwink the voter into overlooking the performance of the government on the ground and of what benefit have its policies been to him. The NDA Government headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee realized it after its defeat that its "India Shining" campaign had flopped. In Karnataka, for instance, the urban voters have overwhelmingly voted for the BJP and rejected the Congress for the reason that being victims of unchecked inflation, they are both vocal and assertive. Urban unrest has given a further edge to the BJP's campaign based on caste appeal and teach the "betrayer" and "saboteur" H.D. Deve Gowda of JD(S) a lesson. In a way, the voters' vented their anger against JD(S) to benefit the BJP, rather than reject the Congress, which has actually improved its tally compared to the last election. Mr. Deve Gowda double-crossed the Congress in 2006, and the BJP in November 2007 and brought a phase of amoral politics into the State. He had hoped to play spoiler and emerge kingmaker once again, but the voters did not let that happen and he ended with 28 seats against 58 he had held in the last Assembly. With the BJP having formed the Government on the basis of majority support, Mr. Gowda's nuisance value has been eliminated. In the last election the BJP had won 79 seats with 28 per cent vote and the Congress only 64, though its vote share was 36 per cent. This time, the BJP has substantially increased its vote share (33.9 %) and bagged 110 seats. The Congress' vote share and fallen slightly (34.6%) but it is still more than that of the BJP, although its tally is only 80, though higher than previously. The vote, therefore, does not amount to wholesale rejection of the Congress, which has retained its vote share and improved its tally. But, it is a result of greater confidence in the BJP, which was the largest single party in the dissolved Assembly but could not govern. One cannot fault the BJP for adopting whatever strategy it thought was appropriate in the circumstances to better its previous performance and claim the government. When combatants go to battle with the objective of achieving victory, scant respect is shown to rules of the game and all is fair. If the BJP consolidated the Lingayat vote, there was nothing to prevent the Congress from wooing the Vokliggas and other castes, apart form the minorities and Scheduled Castes, which have been its traditional support base. The fact remains that the BJP mounted a highly organized, efficient and aggressive electoral campaign under its old leader. The RSS cadres also participated fully in the campaign. The BJP has commanded a substantial following in Karnataka for several years and boasts of the party's strongest organizational support base among all the southern states. It only needed a little push to capture more seats, which was provided by its coordinated and targeted campaign, which the rival Congress lacked all through. Factional rivalries, lethargy and inefficiency marked the campaign of the Congress Party. No wonder, therefore, that its vote share fell marginally, though its tally went up as both Congress and the BJP gained at the expense of the JD(S). Mr. S.M.Krishna's entry in the scene at the last moment also was resented by the aspiring State Congress leaders, who though that the former Chief Minister would again claim the throne in case the party won a majority on its own or emerged as the single largest party to claim to form the government. Thought there were many hopefuls, but none was projected as the leader to head the campaign. The Congress leadership had calculated that leaving the leadership issue undecided would induce the many hopefuls to redouble their efforts to achieve victory for the party. But the calculations were proved wrong and the aspirants got busy securing their own seats rather than mounting a coordinated and spirited campaign to make the party win. The congress was divided between old time loyalists and newcomers. Unable to decide who to project as leader, it opted for collective leadership, which did not work. The BJP's victory has sent reverberations across the body politic. It is felt that Karnataka is a dress rehearsal for the bigger battles to come and Mr. L.K. Advani has already claimed that his party would make it to the Centre in next year's parliamentary election. The Congress earlier had a clear social profile and it was the only platform capable of bringing together the numerous backward class groups. It also roped in the dominating caste groups from time to time and become a formidable force. But, its profile gradually changed, with the arrival of Deve Gowda on the scene, estrangement of the minorities and clever playing of the upper caste (Lingayat vs Vokalliga) politics by the BJP, which also used the religious card. The present moment was opportune for it, because it could exploit the dissatisfaction among the urban voters with the government's policies and rising living costs. This was the worst time for the Congress to hold elections because it is still helpless to deal with inflation. Having lost in Karnataka the Congress, which is ruling at the Centre, cannot rest on its oars as it has bigger challenges to contend with. It faces elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh and other states later this year and the biggest battle next year when Lok Sabha elections are scheduled. In retrospect, in the last one year it has lost the Assembly elections in several states, including Gujarat, Punjab, Meghalaya and Himachal Pradesh and there are no clear indications that it is gearing up for the upcoming battles and is in good shape. At the national level it has to project a leader as its prime Ministerial candidate to take on L.K.Advani and not take the alibi of leaving the issue to be settled by the "High Command" after the elections. Some fundamental changes in the way the party is run are needed. Mrs. Sonia Gandhi should shed the fear that by displeasing the old coterie, the organisation will be weakened as the crooks will sabotage elections. The Government's performance will have to improve and it should not play into the hands of rootless leaders and un-answerable official advisers who botched up the Indo-US nuclear deal and left the leadership to take the consequences of its failure. While the Government's credibility has suffered, they remain in positions of power and authority under a Prime Minister not known to be firm in handling matters and people or conscious of the political costs of unrealistic economic liberation schemes. As the string of election defeats proves, the Government's cash-disbursing schemes have had no impact on the people. The Congress has to emerge from coterie politics, reshape itself, correct mistakes, induct younger leadership and strengthen its organizational base. Otherwise, it will pay a heavy price for indecisiveness, inaction and allowing things to drift. MK Dhar, NPA