Also, look at the fractured verdict. After the agitations in Jammu and in the Valley after the Amarnath land controversy, the state was seen to be dangerously polarised. That polarisation is reflected, in part, in the gains made by the PDP and the BJP. Yet, the way the assembly seats have been dealt, these two parties have been sorted out for possible cohabitation in the opposition; they cannot claim a mandate from the voters to set the agenda for governance. And in keeping with the trend in other parts of India, J&K’s voters have clipped the clout of Others/ Independents. Their state, they say, should be governed from the middle ground. A successfully participative and free and fair election does not in itself solve Jammu and Kashmir’s problems. But it validates mainstream politics as the most effective mediator in finding solutions.