The emergence of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, a key figure belonging to the privileged Nehru-Gandhi family, is a case in point. He has come a long way from the time he tore up an "ordinance" into pieces before it could become a piece of legislation.

Not only his supporters, but also those who voted against him and the promises he upheld are eager to know how responsibly he performs his role. After all, he is slated to become the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. The Gandhi scion had conducted a rhetorical campaign. It is time now to display the scholarship of a good parliamentarian.

If past records are anything to go by, Rahul Gandhi failed to cut an impressive figure as an MP in his earlier stints. Indeed, he drew a poor comparison with his grandfather Feroze Gandhi or his father Rajiv Gandhi and was not within hailing distance of his great-grandfather, India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Rahul will do well if he follows the practices which all three of his ancestors followed. Like them, he has to listen carefully and speak sensibly.

Reverting from the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family, a renewed focus on Dalit politics comes up with interesting revelations. It is undergoing a transformation. There is a decline in the influence of established figures like Mayawati in the victory of Chandrasekhar Azad "Ravan" at Nagina in Uttar Pradesh. It is a pointer to a desire among Dalit voters for new leadership. They seem to seek one that can advocate their interests more effectively. A multi-cornered contest from which Azad emerged at the top does him credit.

The defeat of BJP in a constituency like Faizabad, home of Ayodhya Ram Mandir is a marker to the return and revival of secularism. It may be one of the most unlikely places for such a turnaround but this very fact makes it all the more significant. The victory of Samajwadi Party (SP) candidate Awadesh Prasad could not have come at a better time. For the SP's Dalit candidate winning a general category seat sends a message to the saffron camp. The Hindutva brigade has been told in plain language of the voters' desire for inclusive politics. Awadesh Prasad's victory is a resounding nay to religious politics and caste divisions.

It is also time the Left did more than field young faces to reinvent itself. Wiped out of the electoral map of West Bengal, 27 out of 29 Left candidates lost their deposits. An "internal introspection" is on. If some of the senior Left leaders change into ashes and sackcloth (making a clean breast of things) and interact with the people, some lost political ground can be salvaged in the 2026 Assembly elections in West Bengal.

On a wider scale, the return of coalition politics marks a reinforcement of federalism. It will likely curb the BJP's centralisation tendencies, together with a higher pitch of the voices of smaller political outfits promoting a cooperative approach absent in governance in the past decade. Come the Budget, one would know whether the ruling dispensation has realised that economic issues fuelled voters' disaffection and election outcome. More inclusive economic policies would ensure that the boat of the NDA government is not rocked even as tensions between the RSS and the BJP can bring about shifts in the latter's internal dynamics. (IPA Service)