Lok Sabha Election 2009, Vols. I to V

Contents: Vol. I. Indian National Congress: Preface. 1. Introduction. 2. Voters\' love-hate relationship with Congress. 3. Election 2004: UPA Born to rule. 4. Verdict 2009: vote for continuity and stability. 5. Who helped Congress win?: i. Luck. ii. Rahul Gandhi. iii. Youth. iv. Development schemes. 6. Advantage United Progressive alliance. 7. BJP and the left: vicious circle of follies. 8. What the UPA victory means for India. 9. Making sense of the verdict. 10. Important speeches and interviews. Appendix: manifesto of the Indian National Congress. Bibliography. Index.

Vol. II. Bharatiya Janata Party: Preface. 1. Historical background. 2. Lok Sabha Election 1999: BJP-led coalition voted to power. 3. Verdict 2004: Lost to the UPA. 4. Verdict 2009: how India voted. 5. Why BJP failed: Varun Effect. ii. Problems within. iii. Aped Congress. iv. There is nothing called a Hindu vote. v. Blunder of projecting Advani as Prime Ministerial candidate. vi. Mask upon mask. vii. Shrillness. viii. Faulty election plan. ix. Failed to articulate poll issues in contemporary context. x. PM-Modi controversy. 6. Future course of action. 7. Important speeches and interviews: i. Advani speech at National Executive Meet. ii. Rajnath\'s speech at National Executive Meet. iii. An interview with Jaswant Singh. Appendix: manifesto of the BJP. Bibliography. Index.

Vol. III. Communist Parties: Preface. 1. Historical background. 2. The left and electoral politics in India. 3. Role of the left in National politics: i. Congress-led UPA Government: left support and challenges. ii. Third front and the left. iii. Stand on Indo-US nuclear deal. 4. Left suffers worst setback: i. Fall in vote share. ii. Jolt in Kerala. iii. Humiliating defeat in Bengal. 5. Breach in Marxist citadel: i. Karat\'s blunders. ii. Arrogance. iii. Erosion of mass base. iv. Minority swing. v. Willful neglect of Welfare Projects. vi. Challenges from within. vii. Rejection of third front. viii. Decision to withdraw support from UPA Government. ix. People\'s new-found love for stable government. x. In adequate expression to Bengali patriotism. 6. Lessons for the left. 7. Prakash Karat: important interviews. Appendices: i. Manifesto of CPI (M). ii. Manifesto of CPI. Bibliography. Index.

Vol. IV. Regional Parties: Preface. 1. Role of regional parties in India. 2. Bahujan Samaj Party. 3. Samajwadi Party. 4. Shiromani Akali Dal. 5. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. 6. All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. 7. Telugu Desam Party. Appendices. i. Manifesto of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. ii. AIADMK Election manifesto. Bibliography. Index.

Vol. V. Coalition Politics: Preface. 1. Coalition politics in India: meaning and evolution. 2. Janata Party experiment. 3. National Front Government: a flop show. 4. NDA Government: the first successful coalition. 5. UPA Government: success story repeated. 6. Coalition Government and political stability. 7. Regional parties and coalition politics. 8. Multiculturalism and coalition politics in India. 9. Consequences of coalition politics. 10. Lessons learnt. 11. Prospects and challenges. Bibliography. Index.

"Lok Sabha Election 2009 has produced a decisive verdict which sets a new political trend after 20 years. The people have sent the Bharatiya Janata Party packing and rejecting its politics of exclusion. The verdict has also given a drubbing of historic proportions to both the Left Front and the Third Front.

This set of five volumes attempts to map the political context of this election for different parties or their coalitions. Taking a close look at the surprise element of the verdict--the Congress crossing the mark of 200 seats and the UPA coming to majority--it tries to investigate why the people rejected the BJP, the Communist parties and the Third Front. It further analyzes to what extent the caste, leadership, candidate selection and regional issues influenced the people\'s verdict. Also, it examines the future of coalition politics in India."