Pulling out all the stops
For journalists who have covered the BJP campaigns, in both Gujarat and Karnataka, the contrast in mood has been stark: on December 17, 2017, a day before the Gujarat results, the party's workers, of whatever rank, were in a state of high anxiety. On the eve of the Karnataka poll results, May 14, the mood was one of circumspect confidence. Some said the party would form the government with 130 seats, others predicted 120 seats but even the pessimists were certain the BJP would emerge as the single largest party.
In the event, the optimism proved reasonably valid. The BJP did emerge as the single largest party, of course, but it fell just short of a majority. It was unlucky to lose eight seats (exactly the number that would have given it a clear majority) by less than 2,500 votes. The Congress tally, on the other hand, slid from 122 to 78 seats. The real difference between the two parties was in the details:
