Emergence of Regional Forces

MR THE shouting and the sunshine have been restored to the hearts of all those traifickiug in public credulity. But, in fact, the Congress showing at the inini- gemcral elections, covering a fifth of the population, was neither sweeping nor spectacular; it Jailed to win even a bare majority in three of the four legislative assemblies it tried to capture with the help of the CIT or the Con- gress(O). But in Uttar Pradesh it won a victory of sorts. The victory might not be convincing because the majority is wafer-thin and the Congress had 271 members in the out-going Assembly, albeit a third of them defectors. The 1969 tally had been only 211 and the party had split since. Vet the UP verdict is claimed to be conclusive because the Congress has a house majority of its own fur the first time since 1962.