This could be symbolic of the expectations that Bellary may have from the Congress which it has chosen without a break in the history of parliamentary polls. Despite the fact that it shot to centrestage with two key players in the arena, this backward district does not seem pepped up by Sonia's victory.

Member of the outgoing Lok Sabha from Bellary and Congress stalwart KC Kondaiah might end up contesting from here in the possible by-election if Sonia decides to retain Amethi which too she is set to pocket, according to local observers. There is an outside chance though, according to some others, that she may hold on to Bellary and field Priyanka Gandhi from Amethi. None of the senior Congress leaders were willing to go on the record with their expectations.

Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Ghulam Nabi Azad who flew out of Bellary Thursday morning, said it was too early to take a decision on the matter and only Sonia could decide for herself.

Insiders believe that Kondaiah, who many thought was being led to the sacrificial altar, could also be rewarded with a Rajya Sabha nomination. Or he could be made to contest again from Bellary.

According to economist and former chief ministerial advisor Dr B Seshadri, at war were the BJP's politics of attainment and the Congress' effort at retainment. He has traced the constituency's affinity for the party back to 1885 when at the first session of the Indian National Congress three of the 72 national participants were from Bellary.

While Kondaiah has developed a good reputation in terms of his public relations, the fact remains that the constituency is among the more backward in terms of human development. This, despite the fact that in Karnataka it ranks seventh in economic growth terms, thanks mainly to the several steels plants and rolling mills as also the iron and manganese ore mines that together provide employment to over five per cent of the 18 lakh plus population.

Seshadri says the economic growth in the district "has not translated into the lives of the locals". While a little less than half of the district is dependent mainly on agriculture, the secondary sector fuels the rest of it. Seshadri believes that with 60 per cent of the 8.08 lakh strong workforce in the primary sector, there is a distributional imbalance. With a small percentage in the secondary (or manufacturing/production) sector, the rest are at the low end of the services or tertiary sector.

Pitching for development, he says more than the politicians and bureaucrats, it was for the people themselves to pressurise and force the administration into action.

The general sentiment though appears to be one of disillusionment, not hope. As Muslims had voted for Swaraj in large numbers (an over 20 per cent swing towards the BJP in the community according to some estimates), many of them expressed dismay over her defeat.