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    COVER STORY                                                               MAY 08, 2026     |  The Indian Eye                    6

            star gave him immediate visibility and                                                                tion, while fragmented, is not without
            a strong emotional connection with                                                                    resources or resilience.
            voters, particularly the youth. How-                                                                   A Fragmented Transformation
            ever, his success cannot be attributed
            to celebrity alone. His campaign ef-                                                                        he 2026 assembly election
            fectively tapped into anti-incumbency                                                                       results collectively point to
            sentiment against the DMK-led gov-                                                                    Ta seismic shift in Indian poli-
            ernment, presenting TVK as a fresh                                                                    tics—but one that defies simple nar-
            alternative unburdened by the bag-                                                                    ratives. Rather than a uniform trans-
            gage of traditional politics.                                                                         formation, what emerges is a complex
                The decision to contest without                                                                   and uneven reconfiguration of power.
            alliances further reinforced this image.                                                                  In West Bengal, the BJP has
            As his father, filmmaker S.A. Chan-                                                                   achieved a historic breakthrough,
            drasekhar,  noted,  Vijay’s  “boldness”                                                               dismantling a long-standing political
            in standing independently was a key                                                                   order and establishing itself as a dom-
            factor in his success. This approach al-  Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) workers celebrate as the party leads during vote counting for   inant force in eastern India. In As-
            lowed TVK to position itself as a gen-                                                                sam, it has consolidated its position,
            uinely new force rather than an exten-  the Tamil Nadu assembly elections, in Coimbatore on Monday. (ANI Video Grab)  demonstrating the durability of its
            sion of existing political formations.                                                                political project in the Northeast. In
                The  electoral  outcome  reflects   tresses  have  been  demolished”  and   and postponing leadership decisions   Tamil Nadu, a new player has disrupt-
            this shift. With over 100 seats, TVK   that “traditional arithmetic has been   until after the election, the alliance   ed decades of Dravidian dominance,
            has become the central player in Tam-  rejected,”  highlighting  the  depth  of   was able to present a cohesive front.   introducing uncertainty and opening
            il Nadu politics, reducing the DMK   the shift.                     This contrasts with previous elections,   up new political possibilities. In Ker-
            and AIADMK to secondary roles.        For Congress, this victory is par-  where factionalism had undermined   ala, Congress has staged a significant
            While it falls short of an outright ma-  ticularly  significant.  The  party  has   its prospects.    comeback, offering a rare but import-
            jority, its position as the largest party   faced a series of electoral setbacks in   The defeat of the LDF has broad-  ant counterpoint to the BJP’s rise.
            gives it significant leverage in govern-  recent years, and its inability to con-  er implications. With this loss, Left   These divergent outcomes un-
            ment formation.                   vert  opportunities  into  victories  has   parties are no longer in power in any   derscore the persistence of regional
                The broader implications of this   raised  questions  about its  organiza-  Indian  state,  marking  a  significant   dynamics in Indian politics. While
            result are far-reaching. It suggests that   tional strength.  The  success  in Ker-  contraction  of  their  political  influ-  national parties play a crucial role,
            Tamil Nadu’s political identity, long   ala provides a much-needed boost,   ence. The CPI(M) acknowledged the   state-level factors—leadership, iden-
            rooted in Dravidian ideology, may be   demonstrating that the party can still   setback, describing it as “serious” and   tity, governance, and local issues—
            undergoing a transformation. Person-  mobilize voters effectively under the   promising corrective measures.  continue to shape electoral outcomes
            ality-driven politics, combined with is-  right conditions.             Kerala’s result also highlights the   in decisive ways.
            sue-based mobilization, appears to be   Leaders such as Rahul Gandhi   limits of the BJP’s expansion. Despite   Prime Minister Narendra Mo-
            gaining ground.                   and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra framed   its growing  national  presence, the   di’s emphasis on “the politics of per-
                This is not without precedent. The   the result as a mandate for develop-  party remains a marginal player in   formance”  captures  one  dimension
            state has a history of film stars transi-  ment  and  governance.  Rahul  Gand-  the  state.  However,  its  leaders  have   of this transformation. However, the
            tioning into political leadership, from   hi emphasized Kerala’s “talent” and   pointed to increased support and   continued importance of identity pol-
            M.G. Ramachandran to J. Jayalali-  “potential,”  while  Priyanka  Gandhi   emphasized their development agen-  itics, coalition-building, and regional
            thaa. However, Vijay’s rise occurs in a   spoke of fulfilling commitments with   da, suggesting that they are playing a   aspirations suggests that India’s polit-
            different era, shaped by social media,   “honesty and humility.”    long-term game.                   ical evolution is far more complex.
            changing voter expectations, and a    A key factor in the UDF’s suc-    In sum, Kerala represents a coun-  For the opposition, the results
            more fragmented political landscape.  cess  was  its  relatively  unified  cam-  tercurrent in India’s  political land-  present both challenges and oppor-
                The key question now is whether   paign. By avoiding internal divisions   scape—a reminder that the opposi-  tunities. Congress’s success in Kerala
            TVK can sustain its momentum and                                                                      shows that it can still win under favor-
            translate electoral success into effec-                                                               able conditions, but its failures else-
            tive governance. For the moment,                                                                      where highlight the need for organiza-
            however, Tamil Nadu stands as a re-                                                                   tional renewal. Regional parties face
            minder that even the most entrenched                                                                  an equally uncertain future, as seen in
            political systems are not immune to                                                                   the contrasting fortunes of the TMC
            disruption.                                                                                           and emerging formations like TVK.
                                                                                                                      Ultimately, the “seismic shift” in
                Kerala: Congress Finds                                                                            Indian politics is not a single घटना but
                        Renewal                                                                                   a series of interconnected changes.
               n Kerala, the elections produced                                                                   It reflects the dynamic and often un-
               a different kind of shift—one of                                                                   predictable nature of democracy in a
            Irenewal rather than disruption.                                                                      diverse and complex society. The new
            The Congress-led United Democratic                                                                    electoral map is not a finished product
            Front (UDF) secured a decisive victo-                                                                 but an evolving landscape—one that
            ry, winning 102 seats in the 140-mem-                                                                 will continue to be shaped by future
            ber assembly and ending a decade of                                                                   contests, alliances, and political inno-
            Left  Democratic  Front  (LDF)  rule                                                                  vations.
            under Pinarayi Vijayan.                                                                                   If there is one clear takeaway, it
                The scale of the victory was cap-                                                                 is this: Indian politics has entered a
            tured by Congress leader K. C. Venu-  Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy celebrates the victory of the Congress-led UDF alliance   phase of transition. The old certain-
            gopal, who described it as a “UDF   in the Kerala Assembly election in Hyderabad on Monday (@revanth_anumula X/ANI Photo)  ties are fading, but the new order is
            tsunami.”  He  noted  that  “red  for-                                                                still taking shape.

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