In a good election, the SP could get something like 75% of the Yadav and Muslim votes and the BSP could get 85% of Jatav and 60% of other Dalit votes. Have they tapped into that much or transferred all of it? I am not sure. Has Mayawati’s base among non-Jatav Dalits eroded further? Have the Muslims not been distracted by the presence of the Congress? If we see that the alliance did not deliver to the extent to which it was expected to, then these will be the underlying reasons. One thing we can say without hesitation though. In the whole of north and west of India (the area where the BJP swept in the 2014 polls), except Punjab, UP is the only place where the party is facing a serious resistance. But this resistance has come on the basis of caste and community arithmetic, not on the basis of ideological or agenda. Being able to offer an alternative dream, being able to convince voters of an alternative vision is altogether different. That did not happen in UP, and it could be one of the reasons why this historic alliance may not achieve what it potentially could.