The elections in five assemblies show that the BJP has not only recovered from the setback it received in the 2024 general elections but has now become the most powerful political force in eastern India. It is already ruling in Odisha, Bihar, and Assam, and now it has conquered the important fort of Bengal as well. Until a few years ago, this was considered impossible. Through its electoral machinery and planning, it has succeeded in bringing about what is called “Poriborton” in Bengal. The leadership built its network down to the grassroots level and succeeded in ending the perception that it was an outsider party that would destroy Bengali culture.
Those who are called the Bengali bhadralok and who were once admirers of Jyoti Basu and later came with Mamata Banerjee now seem to have accepted the BJP. The BJP had long been trying to become a truly pan-Indian party. The obstacles were Bengal, Punjab, and the South. In Bengal, the “game” has now happened. This is a major achievement for the Narendra Modi–Amit Shah duo, who managed to defeat a combative leader like Mamata Banerjee. The South still seems out of reach. But one must appreciate their political determination. The chaos created by the Election Commission may have had some role in BJP’s victory in Bengal, but the scale of the victory shows that people had become frustrated with Mamata Banerjee’s rule. Mamata has been CM since 2011.
The entire politics of the party revolves around her. She even declared that she herself was the candidate on all 294 seats. By doing this, she wanted to shield her party from allegations of manipulation, violence, and corruption. But it did not work. Her personal lifestyle is extremely simple — the same slippers and cotton saree. Despite being in power for fifteen years, she still lives in her old three-room house. She did not build any palace for herself, but the same cannot be said about her party. The TMC is widely seen as corrupt, anarchic, violent, and exploitative. Whether it was the Saradha and Narada scams or the shameful rape and murder incident of the doctor at RG Kar Medical Hospital, Mamata Banerjee’s response appeared unserious.
There are many complaints that local TMC leaders have created their own syndicates and demand money for every task. During Mamata’s 15 years of rule, West Bengal has seen industrial decline. While all major cities — Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Bengaluru — progressed, Kolkata seems to have stagnated. Unemployment has increased. She tried to make the election an issue of saving “Bengali identity”. This strategy worked in two elections. This time it failed. She even went so far as to say, “They will not let you eat meat, fish, and eggs. If you eat them, you will be declared Bangladeshi.”
The BJP had to send Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma there to counter this. His challenge was that he would eat two kilos more meat than Mamata! In West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala, people voted for whichever alternative seemed capable of uprooting the ruling parties. This is our old tradition — we always search for an alternative. In Tamil Nadu, people were dissatisfied with both the DMK and AIADMK. Since Congress was associated with the DMK, it was not seen as an alternative, and within two years actor Vijay’s party, TVK, was established as one. But Vijay’s success also sends a message.
In Bengal and Assam, the BJP described its victory as Hindu consolidation, but it is noteworthy that in Tamil Nadu, which is a deeply religious state, people supported Vijay, whose full name is Joseph Vijay Chandrasekhar — meaning he is Christian. This should be understood as an example of secularism, which is disappearing from North, West, and East India. In Tamil Nadu, film stars M.G. Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa both became chief ministers, but Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan failed in their attempts. The results in both Tamil Nadu and Kerala went against the ruling parties, yet ironically both states are counted among the best-governed in the country. Compared to North Indian states, they are far better. Out of all registered factories in the country, 15% are in Tamil Nadu alone.
Apple phones are manufactured in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu. Hyundai, BMW, Tata Motors — all have operations there. Hyundai is going to invest nearly ₹45,000 crore there. Tamil Nadu is acting as the growth engine of the country, but dynastic politics and corruption destroyed the DMK. Similarly, Kerala is one of the best-administered states in many respects. In sectors like education, it is ahead of everyone else. But people rejected the Left because it was believed that Left parties had moved away from their principles. Kerala’s defeat also carries another message — the sunset of Left politics is underway. For the first time since 1960, there will be no Left government anywhere in the country. Long periods in power created stagnation and other weaknesses. They had no new program for a new India.
The BJP’s massive victory in Assam is not surprising. Even though Priyanka Gandhi was made in charge, Congress could not compete, as reflected in the defeat of Tarun Gogoi. Himanta Biswa Sarma’s cash schemes are very popular. Last month, around 4 million women in Assam received ₹9,000. It was called a “Mama” gift. Every family was already receiving ₹1,250 monthly. All political parties are trying to make women their vote bank, but the amount of cash distributed will keep increasing with every election and one day it will become impossible to manage. Stirring up the issue of Bangladeshi “infiltrators” remains easy.
It worked for the BJP in both Assam and Bengal. But now there is a problem. As senior journalist Shikha Mukherjee from Kolkata also wrote, “The BJP must now decide where those declared infiltrators under SIR will be deported. Bangladesh has clearly stated that there are no Bangladeshi infiltrators in India.” That country will not take them back. Another aspect of these elections was the role of the Election Commission. Millions of people in Bengal could not vote because they lacked documents. Ironically, many election officials themselves complained that their names were missing from voter rolls. Until now, the Election Commission used to focus on including people.
This is the first election where emphasis was placed on excluding people. If a scheme like SIR had to be implemented, people should have been given adequate time to prove their citizenship. Many people work in other states. Those who were removed were not even given proper explanations. In a democracy, suddenly depriving millions of people of voting rights is extremely dangerous. As former Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi wrote, “The right to vote is a citizen’s greatest democratic right. Any campaign that weakens this right cannot be considered constitutionally justified.” The Supreme Court had said, “The right to vote is the most precious right. We will examine the complaints.”
Unfortunately, despite this, millions of Indians were deprived of voting rights. What will be the political impact of these elections? The BJP is winning one state after another. In Maharashtra, Shiv Sena and NCP have split. AAP has already lost Delhi, and now its seven Rajya Sabha MPs have joined the BJP. In Bihar, the RJD has been defeated and the JDU is in BJP’s pocket. Now in Bengal, the “game” is over for the TMC as well! The Left has been wiped out. At this moment, 72% of the country, 78% of the population, and 20 states are under BJP control. In Kerala, the Congress-led UDF certainly won a huge victory, but that state sends only 20 MPs to the Lok Sabha. The INDIA alliance, which was already stumbling, has weakened further because two major pillars Stalin and Mamata — lost elections.
The first line of opposition leadership has weakened. Arvind Kejriwal is defeated, while Naveen Patnaik and Nitish Kumar are slowly moving toward the margins. Congress may get a chance to form a government with TVK in Tamil Nadu, but it certainly needs introspection about why it lagged behind by 81 seats in Assam, where it was in direct competition with the BJP. Why could it not benefit from anti-incumbency? It even lagged behind in Puducherry, adjacent to Tamil Nadu. In the INDIA alliance, only two major parties now remain — Congress and the Samajwadi Party. Next year there will be elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Akhilesh Yadav will be the BJP’s target. Are we moving toward an opposition-free India? If that happens, it would be extremely unfortunate, because then democracy itself would be in danger. But the BJP alone cannot be blamed for this. The chaotic condition and confused leadership of the opposition alliance are more responsible. If it is ready to commit political suicide, why would the BJP stop it?
