NEW DELHI: Following the Congress Party’s loss in seven states in 1967, a saying emerged indicating that one could travel by train from Delhi to Howrah without passing through a Congress-ruled state. Nearly six decades later, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has reversed this scenario, now allowing for a journey from Chandigarh in Haryana to Howrah that passes exclusively through BJP-ruled states.
On May 4, Suvendu Adhikari took oath as the Chief Minister of West Bengal, marking the BJP’s first government in the state and the ninth instance where the party has appointed a new chief minister for the first time since Narendra Modi assumed the role of Prime Minister in 2014.
The party’s expansion began with victories in Haryana and Maharashtra in the 2014 assembly elections, continuing with wins in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in 2016, followed by Manipur in 2017, Tripura in 2018, Odisha in 2024, and Bihar in 2026.
In Haryana, the BJP formed its first-ever government under Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. In Maharashtra, the party emerged as the largest party in the assembly elections, leading to Devendra Fadnavis becoming the state’s first BJP chief minister as part of the Mahayuti alliance.
Additionally, the BJP made significant inroads into the Northeast in 2016 by winning Assam, where Sarbananda Sonowal became the state’s first BJP chief minister. Since then, the BJP has maintained its hold in Assam, winning consecutive elections, including one held in April.
In the same year, the BJP established its first full-fledged government in Arunachal Pradesh following significant political realignment. After a prolonged political crisis in July 2016, Congress leader Pema Khandu became chief minister. Shortly after, he and a majority of Congress MLAs switched to the People’s Party of Arunachal, an ally of the BJP. By December of that year, Khandu and 33 MLAs had transitioned to the BJP, securing a clear majority and stabilizing the government.
The BJP also forged a post-poll alliance with the National People’s Party, Naga People’s Front, and regional parties in Manipur in 2017, ultimately leading to the appointment of N Biren Singh as chief minister—the party’s inaugural government in that border state. A year later, the BJP ended the Left Front’s long-standing dominance in Tripura with the formation of its government led by Biplab Kumar Deb.
The BJP recorded another major milestone in eastern India in 2024 by defeating the Biju Janata Dal in Odisha, with Mohan Charan Majhi becoming the BJP’s chief minister and ending Naveen Patnaik’s uninterrupted 24-year governance.
In Bihar, where the BJP has traditionally been part of coalition governments led by Nitish Kumar, the party appointed its first chief minister in 2026, following Kumar’s departure to the Rajya Sabha. Samrat Choudhary assumed the position after Kumar stepped down.
With its recent win in West Bengal, the BJP has now established a government in another state that was previously challenging for the party. The BJP secured 207 out of 294 assembly seats, marking one of its most notable expansions in post-Independence India.
This rise across eastern and northeastern India reflects a broader political transformation over the past decade. Once considered primarily a party of the Hindi heartland, the BJP has expanded into regions where it historically had limited organizational presence, leveraging a blend of organizational growth, welfare outreach, leadership promotion, and the decline or fragmentation of opposition parties.
BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla attributed the party’s expansion under Prime Minister Modi to its governance model and growing public acceptance. “Under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, the BJP and NDA have continually expanded their political footprint across India based on governance, performance, and delivery,” he stated. He emphasized that states without a BJP government or chief minister previously have now elected BJP-led administrations since Modi’s arrival in office.
With West Bengal included in its achievements, the BJP’s evolution illustrates its transition from a primarily Hindi-heartland force to a predominant pan-India political entity.
