CHENNAI: The poor showing by both national parties, Congress and BJP, in the TN polls underlines the hard realities of establishing a footprint in a state focused on regional identity and the legacy of the Dravidian movement.Congress’s reduced tally proves it is still not able to rebuild a mass base, six decades after losing power to DMK in 1967. The party contested 28 seats and won five compared to 2021, when it contested 25 and won 18. Across three previous assembly polls, its vote share fell from 9.3% to 6.42% and finally 4.27% in 2021.Yet Rahul Gandhi campaigned in only nine constituencies with the usual camaraderie between the DMK and Congress leadership notably absent. Now, some sections are looking at the possibility of joining hands with TVK, along with Left parties and VCK.As for BJP, despite frequent visits by PM Modi and home minister Amit Shah since Jan, the party still has not found a formula to convert visibility and organisational effort into voter trust for a “double engine sarkar”.Opponents say the outcome, despite the improved vote share, is proof that TN continues to resist Hindutva-centred politics.The national brass had taken a gamble. K Annamalai was replaced as the state chief; senior functionaries were in the dark about constituency decisions; and key calls were made in Delhi. At the state headquarters, the refrain has been poor seat allocation. Its lone win came in Udhagamandalam.