[FAO] 3-2 for Cong, BJP loses in Rajasthan ~ ForAngelsOnly

NEW DELHI: Coming up trumps in the 'semi final' ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the congress

delivered a shock defeat to BJP in Rajasthan

and swept the polls in Delhi and Mizoram while the saffron party won convincingly to retain Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

Scoring a hattrick in Delhi and getting a two-thirds majority in Mizoram after a decade in wilderness, the party, however, fell five short of majority in the 200-member Assembly in Rajasthan.

With a number of party rebels and independents winning in Rajasthan, the party hopes to cobble a majority without any difficulty.

Ousting the Vasundhara Raje government, the Congress won 96 seats while the BJP got 78 and BSP six. Independents have won 14 seats while others account for six, including one of Samajwadi Party.

Creating history in the capital, the Congress led by 71-year-old Shiela Dikshit romped home with 42 seats in the 70-member Assembly, leaving BJP far behind with 23 seats and its hopes of wresting power after a decade dashed.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and all six of her cabinet colleagues emerged victorious. Opening its account, the BSP won two seats.

In Mizoram, the Congress wrested power from the Mizo National Front, winning 29 of the 40 seats.

The elections, seen as the 'semi-final' ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year, brought cheer to the Congress which had faced debacles in 13 states after coming to power at the head of a coalition at the Centre in 2004.

The BJP, which hoped to cash in on the terror card especially after the November 26 Mumbai attacks and sweep in all the states barring Mizoram, retained its grip on Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh on development plank, breaking the jinx of failing to get re-elected in any state other than Gujarat.