Even victories can leave a bitter aftertaste. The Bharatiya Janata Party may have won Gujarat - for several times in a row now. But Gujarat, considered to be a citadel of the BJP, has left the party with a slightly bloodied nose. The BJP's tally has fallen: the figure appears all the more modest when compared to the target that the party president, Amit Shah, had set his eyes on. The electoral returns were expected to be trimmed somewhat. The agitation for reservation by the Patidars as well as anger against demonetization and the goods and services tax among Gujarat's trading communities forced a nervous BJP to mobilize its top leaders for the campaign. Even the prime minister, the BJP's trump card, was forced to toil hard in order to get his message across. That must have been a disagreeable experience for Narendra Modi: he is used to boisterous receptions of his words and deeds. When the crowds refused to be swayed by the rhetoric of development, Mr Modi fell back on other time-tested weapons - petulance and provocation. A Congress leader, who made a distasteful remark about the prime minister, gave Mr Modi an opportunity to seek public sympathy by burnishing his credentials as a common man. That was not all. Mr Modi even alleged that Pakistan was trying to influence the polls to sow the seeds of division among the electorate. Contrastingly, Rahul Gandhi, Mr Modi's principal opponent, remained composed, almost Gandhian, in his approach, keeping his focus on such issues as unemployment, agrarian distress and the economic downturn. Gujarat may have witnessed the emergence of a credible leader in the ranks of a beleaguered Opposition.

It would be interesting to see how the Gujarat verdict influences not just national politics but also power dynamics within the BJP. Would, for instance, Messrs Modi and Shah be more accommodating of the views of their colleagues and opponents while drafting policy? Would the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh now reclaim its role as the BJP's puppetmaster? Meanwhile, the Congress is likely to view its performance as a sign of some sort of resurgence. That could turn the next general elections into a level playing field. But there is a point to ponder for the Congress. The BJP's success in Gujarat is being attributed in some quarters to Mr Modi's divisive campaign. What does this portend for a secular polity and its defendants?