NEW DELHI: Voting began in the first of a slew of state elections Monday that will indicate how much corruption and inflation have hurt Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the graft-plagued Congress party. The national government is reeling from a massive telecom corruption scandal and stubbornly high inflation, which have led to widespread protests. On Monday, voters cast ballots in the northeastern state of Assam, known for its tea and oil as well as its myriad of rebel insurgencies, in an election that will be held in two stages. But eyes are focused further ahead on elections in the key states of West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala that are being seen as a mini-referendum on the popularity of the 78-year-old premier. Congress and its allies are expected to end more than three decades of communist rule in eastern West Bengal and triumph in southern Kerala where voter sentiment has also turned against the ruling leftists. The margin of victory and voter sentiment will be closely watched by analysts for whether recent troubles at the national level have hurt local Congress candidates. Few analysts expect any significant policy decisions on economic reforms before results are out on May 13. Last November, as the corruption scandals were mounting, the ruling Congress party received a drubbing in elections in the eastern state of Bihar, India's poorest state. Opinion polls suggest the Congress party's key ally in southern Tamil Nadu, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party (DMK), which has been caught up in the telecom scandal, is in a tight race with the opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, led by former film star Jayalalithaa. In Assam, Congress could hold on to power due to divisions among the opposition Hindu national Bharatiya Janata Party and the local Asom Gana Parishad, analysts say. Congress is also tipped to retain power in the union territory of Pondicherry.
