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    ISAS Briefs

    Quick analytical responses to occurrences in South Asia

    91 : State Assembly election results in India: Dispelling the many commonly-held notions of Indian elections

    Tridivesh Singh Maini

    12 December 2008

    The recent assembly elections, dubbed by many as the ‘semifinals’ of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, in five states – Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram and Rajasthan – sprung many surprises. The Congress Party won three states and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) two. To many observers, the results came as a surprise, perhaps including the Congress Party, considering that the elections in Rajasthan and Delhi were held in the aftermath of the Mumbai terrorist attack.