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| Thursday, 14 October 2004 |
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Indian parties battle for nation's industrial hub BOMBAY, Wednesday (Reuters) India's western state of Maharashtra voted in local polls on Wednesday, the first big electoral test for the centre-left Congress party since it won national power five months ago. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), ousted from government in the shock national election result in May, is looking for a comeback in Maharashtra, the country's second most populous state and home to Bombay, its financial hub. Voters streamed into polling stations when they opened at 7:30 a.m. (0200 GMT) in the state of nearly 100 million people, about the combined population of Germany and the Netherlands. Opinion polls show Congress and its allies narrowly ahead of the Hindu nationalist opposition and favourites to retain power in Maharashtra, also home to Bollywood, India's Hindi-language film industry. Anil Ambani, vice chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, India's top business group, and his former-actress wife Tina, were among the first voters in a rich Bombay suburb. "There is a lot riding on this election," said Neerja Chowdhury, political columnist for the Indian Express. Congress and its allies held 149 seats in the outgoing 288-seat assembly. If it falls below a majority, the alliance will need the support of independents to retain power. The Hindu hardline Shiv Sena, the BJP and its supporters had 128 seats. The BJP is optimistic it can exploit India's traditional anti-incumbency vote and win a measure of revenge for May's defeat. Both sides are also hoping Maharashtra will give them momentum for three more state elections over the next year. About 66 million people are eligible to vote in the state. The ballots will be counted on Saturday with results due to be announced the same day. The BJP has tried to raise nationalist and Hindu issues in the campaign but these have often been overshadowed by its attempt to woo the urban and rural poor, whose lack of support for the party probably cost it the national vote in May. In an attempt to woo millions of poor voters, both sides have offered free power, rural debt write-offs and other freebies despite warnings from economists that this would further burden already stretched state finances. Tens of thousands of policemen and troops have been deployed across the state. |
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