Quiet patriotism can defeat muscular nationalism: Chidambaram on polls

Former Home Minister P Chidambaram, who is currently in Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody, has tweeted after the results of the State Assemblies of Haryana and Maharashtra showed that the Indian National Congress (INC) did not suffer a whitewash that was widely expected. Chidambaram praised the Congress party workers and said that they should not lose hope.

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'Must not lose hope'

In the tweet, Chidambaram said, "Congress workers must believe that the BJP can be defeated in an election. Calm and quiet patriotism can defeat muscular nationalism. Once people shed fear, miracles can happen!" During the campaigning in both the States, the BJP had slogans of crossing 200 seats in Maharashtra and 45 seats in Haryana. The Maharashtra Assembly has 288 seats while the Haryana has 90 seats.

The results, however, reflected a different result for the nationalist party. The party expected a majority in both the States but the trends till the evening didn't show the same. In Maharashtra, BJP will have to allow Shiv Sena a greater say in the distribution of portfolios while in Haryana, a post-poll alliance will have to be formed with the regional parties such as the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD). 

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Turnaround for Congress

Prior to the polls, the Congress party was expected to finish the elections with very few seats in both the states, but the results have reflected a different picture. The Congress will be close to the half-way mark of 45 seats in Haryana, while in Maharashtra, along with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), it will have a larger share in the State Assembly. In Haryana, the Congress will also be looking to allign with the regional parties to form the government. Chidambaram is currently in custody for his alleged involvement in the INX media case and was earlier on Thursday, his custody was extended till October 30.

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