BJP’s rise and the test ahead for Nagaland: An Academic Perspective

K Puroh The rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in India’s political landscape is neither accidental nor temporary. It reflects deep social, cultural, and political transformations that have been unfolding across the country over several decades. What India is witnessing today is not merely the electoral success of a political party, but the emergence of a broader political and civilisational movement that has reshaped the national conversation.India’s demographic composition provides part of the explanation. As the overwhelming majority of India’s population belongs to the Hindu community, any political party capable of consolidating a substantial section of this electorate naturally gains a significant electoral advantage. Under India’s current electoral system, where the candidate with the most votes wins, even a vote share of around 40 percent can translate into a commanding parliamentary majority.As early as 2003, when Narendra Modi assumed office as Chief Minister of Gujarat, I had remarked while teaching Government and Politics in India at Kohima College that the BJP was likely to emerge as a dominant national force in the years ahead. Even at that time, the signs of a major political shift were already visible.One of the underlying reasons for this transformation lies in the evolution of India’s secular framework. Over the decades, many among the Hindu majority began to feel that secularism in practice often operated unevenly. Hindu cultural assertion was frequently portrayed as majoritarian or aggressive, while similar expressions by minority communities were celebrated as diversity and pluralism.This perception deepened through policy debates and institutional practices. Hindu religious institutions often came under state regulation, while minority institutions retained greater autonomy.Hindu personal laws underwent reform, whereas minority personal laws remained largely untouched. Gradually, a growing section of the majority community came to believe that they were expected to constantly demonstrate that they posed no threat...