It took some time to sink in. but here I'am keyboarding but yet to recover from the reversal.

Before the Indian general election, few people thought they would be analysing the legacy of prime minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee. Yet on Thursday, the man many were sure of a fourth term in office, appeared on TV screens to deliver details of his resignation and, for one last time as premier, list his achievements.

While the bottomline is Vajpayee is no longer India's Prime Minister the only consolation is he is better leading a strong opposition than a week government. The baton to hold the vague coalition is with Congress and it is now the test begins for them.

Here are words that could mirror the nation's mindset now. One from rediff.com
Today, let us not forget Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the statesman who governed this country for six years may have bowed out after the National Democratic Alliance's defeat in the Lok Sabha election, but his legacy will linger on for many years.

Vir Sanghvi writing in Hindustan Times says,

The premier's exit was not the one he expected and not the one he deserved. "Regardless of the circumstances of the Bharatiya Janata Party's shock defeat on Thursday, history will remember Atal Behari Vajpayee as one of India's finest prime ministers."

As for me, i'll repeat what i deliberated with my pals, most of whom nodded in assent. If there is anybody you can sympathise with, it is Vajpayee and the outgoing Karnataka Chief Minister SM Krishna. These two were men who valued ethics more than politics.