At the end of the counting day, it’s the electorate in both the states of Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand, which came out in large numbers to vote, which must have gone home laughing, argues Sidharth Mishra. Having given a mandate which has a message for all the stakeholders, it has left the political parties with a headache of first forming and then running the government.
Government formation for both the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Jammu and Kashmir and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Jharkhand would be equally challenging. While the advocates for the BJP would point towards a clear majority in Jharkhand with 42 seats, the point not to be missed is that of these six belong to Sudesh Mahto’s All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU), which in past has been part of several political combinations in the state.