Election notebook 6 - 'old India' bites back

By Fergus Nicoll BBC correspondent on the road to Delhi

In chapter six of his India election notebook, Fergus Nicoll says the general election rejection of the government shows that the poor have refused to be taken for granted by political leaders.

THE 'YOU ARE HISTORY' BUTTON - Delhi, 13 May

We've travelled nearly the length of India these past 10 days to look for the "new India".

We've seen the wealthy at work and play, such as the entrepreneurs and visionaries bringing wind farms, innovative outsourcing and even hip-hop to India. It's globalisation in action.

But given the astonishing results of Thursday's count, perhaps we should have paid more attention to the "old India".

These are the untold millions in the cities, but especially in the countryside, who heard the outgoing government insist "India is shining" and thought, "I don't see much that glitters around here".

The hundreds of farmers who've committed suicide in Kerala and Tamil Nadu presumably saw little to celebrate.

Boom times in "Cyberabad" and Bangalore are good news but only for the few. There is no trickle-down.

The pundits talk about an "anti-incumbency vote".

We heard that all right - succinctly put by the head of a Karnataka panchayat (village assembly) who told us that the politicians will always bang the drum for the poor during campaign season but after the vote, nothing.

And that's the button that millions of voters decided to press. The button that said: You promised, you didn't deliver - you're history.

Changing voting patterns

Some see a new political maturity and courage in this voting pattern - the courage to turn away from traditional bloc votes on grounds of dynasties and caste. Now that's a new India, they say.

Rich and poor divided: A pickle-maker in Karnataka

Does the newly victorious Congress party have a magic solution?

Well, long ago, India's first Prime Minister, Jawarhalal Nehru, said: "The forces of a capitalist society, if left unchecked, tend to make the rich richer and the poor poorer."

That ethos could translate into a much greater level of attention to the plight of agriculture and the rural economy.

Now India's business elite - and their foreign trade partners - are waiting to see whether the anticipated presence of a big Communist party coalition partner will seriously jeopardise the country's reform programme.

Still, as not even the most ardent Congress loyalist could seriously have anticipated being back in government under these circumstances, detailed policies may be some time in coming.

Notebook 1 - Communists and fishwives

Notebook 2 - Windmills and matrons

Notebook 3 - Rattling along

Notebook 4 - The astrologer warns

Notebook 5 - A woman promises