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This is an archive article published on May 14, 2004

A historic turnaround

A psephologists8217; nightmare, pollsters8217; quagmire and pundits8217; waterloo, Mandate 2004 is probably the most dramatic turnaround ...

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A psephologists8217; nightmare, pollsters8217; quagmire and pundits8217; waterloo, Mandate 2004 is probably the most dramatic turnaround in the history of post-independence politics. Predictions have gone awry and calculations have fallen by the wayside. Instead, the Indian voter has roared out his message: never take the electorate for granted.

It8217;s been an election of surprise winners and losers, of mind-numbing routs and unexpected victories, non-performing MPs have been thrown out, inexperienced film stars have been given a vote, through it the voter8217;s voice has emerged: clear, mature, unaffected by hype, thirsting for change, striking out for development and the basic amenities of dignified life such as water and electricity.

Fate of the big guns

Polls 8217;04 saw many Union ministers bite the dust

8226; Murli Manohar Joshi
HRD, lost from Allahabad

8226; Manohar Joshi
Speaker, lost from Mumbai North Central

8226; Yashwant Sinha
External Affairs, lost from Hazaribagh

8226; Brij Kishore Tripathi
Steel, won from Puri

8226; Mamata Banerjee
Coal, won from Calcutta South

8226; George Fernandes
Defence, won from Muzaffarpur

8226; Jagmohan
Tourism, lost from New Delhi

8226; Sharad Yadav
Food and Consumer Affairs, lost from Madhepura

8226; Nitish Kumar
Railways, lost from Barh, won from Nalanda

8226; I D Swami
Minister of State for Home, lost from Karnal

8226; Vijay Goel
MoS Youth and Sports, lost from Delhi Sadar

8226; B C Khanduri
Surface Transport, won from Pauri Garhwal

8226; Sahib Singh Verma
Labour, lost from Outer Delhi

8226; Vinod Khanna
MoS External Affairs, won from Gurdaspur

8226; Ram Naik
Petroleum, lost from Mumbai North

8226; S S Dhindsa
Chemicals and Fertilisers, won from Sangrur

 

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