“Until now it is AAP, but if they goof up more, we shall throw our might behind the Congress". This was the refrain in the villages of Punjab in October 2016, before the political parties distributed the seats and the voters clamped up. Most of the last-round reporting before the polls reported a silent vote. The opinion polls predicted a neck-and-neck fight. What we forgot is that the people are watching. People will decide. Newsrooms and opinion pieces do not decide the elections, in Punjab at least.
To understand this, we need to step back a bit. Eighteen months ago, my forays into Punjab coincided with the Aam Aadmi Party deciding to contest elections in the state. In October 2015, the whitefly pest had struck cotton crops, farmers and workers were on rail-roko, the Guru Granth Sahib sacrilege took place in Bargadi and many other places. No one was caught.
Instead, police had killed two innocent protestors. Punjab – Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims – all froze into an angry curl. The administration halted. The ministers hid in their homes. The Sikhs called for a traditional Sarbat Khalsa. Lakhs attended it. It was an old air of conspiracy, the disenchantment with the Akalis was ripe. The mood was set for a change. That is when AAP stepped in.
Also Read: Congress Sets Record For Biggest Poll Win In Punjab In 25 Years