> > And the NDA also lost in 2004 because they didn't do much for rural > development and went with India is shining tag which only urban people > could relate to and backfired badly on them. >
Do you really think so? My personal view is that that explanation is a narrative devised post-election to explain something that can't be explained in terms of a national narrative. In other words, I think the NDA lost (or rather, the UPA won), because they did extremely well in TN and AP, and the Communists also did rather well and they managed to pull together a majority in Parliament. That's it. I don't think the Indian voter really votes much on national issues. If the NDA had won in 2004, everyone would have praised the India Shining campaign for its success. Badri
