Victory, defeat and vindication: Twin poll verdicts a huge positive for BJP

A leader's charisma is a big plus. But don't underestimate the craft of mounting an election campaign. Haryana is BJP's reward for mastering it

The big headline from the twin verdicts on Tuesday is that it is a huge positive for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). There’s redemption in victory, and vindication in defeat.
 

Redemption first. Haryana was the BJP’s first test in its strongholds after the setback in June. It was widely expected by both its friends and foes that the party would find it impossible to win a third successive term. The BJP itself had hedged by not exposing Narendra Modi as the face of the campaign. A loss in Haryana would push it downhill from the edge where