From fringe player to powerhouse: the ascent of BJP in Bihar

The maturation of a governmental enactment successful a peculiar arena is babelike connected galore factors, the foremost being ideology and its acceptance. Equally important are its governmental actions, negotiations with communities, societal and communitarian alliances, and organisational strength, which is forged by committed workers and charismatic leadership.

The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) upward trajectory successful Bihar — opening with its earlier incarnation arsenic the Jana Sangh — tin beryllium attributed to its astute knowing of the State’s governmental landscape, wherever caste is of paramount importance, some socially and electorally. The BJP recognised that successful a State wherever the socialist parties emerged arsenic the main absorption to the Congress and inactive stay a potent force, determination was a consequent request of broadening its societal base. This led to the request to physique a enactment organisation with leaders hailing from a wide scope of castes and assemblage groups.

The BJP (Jana Sangh) is simply a governmental organisation affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which was founded successful 1925 and is identified with issues related to Hindu consciousness and Hindutva successful society. In Bihar, however, Hindutva, arsenic an ideology, remained connected the margins for galore years, adjacent during the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, arsenic the countervailing unit of caste politics, peculiarly aft the Mandal Commission’s recommendations and their implementation, dominated the governmental landscape.

Caste is truthful deep-rooted successful Bihar that it has influenced Muslim and number authorities arsenic well. In 1940, the All India Momin Conference, which claimed to correspond the non-elite Muslim communities, passed a solution successful Patna opposing Partition and organised nationalist protests successful the State. Observers reason that this laid the instauration for what is present known arsenic the authorities of Pasmanda Muslims, oregon non-elite Muslims, which was revived successful the 2000s by Bihar Chief Minister and BJP state Nitish Kumar.

There utilized to beryllium a fashionable saying successful Bihar: “Karmanasha ke paar Hindutva ruk jaata hai” (Hindutva stops astatine Karmanasha river). The river, which marks the bound betwixt Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, became a awesome of the governmental disagreement betwixt the 2 States. While Uttar Pradesh witnessed a much adjacent dispersed of Hindutva and Mandal politics, it was not truthful successful Bihar. The BJP’s authorities successful Bihar, therefore, followed a antithetic trajectory. The accent connected broadening societal coalitions, forging strategical alliances, and focusing connected governance and anti-corruption agitations has contributed to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance remaining successful powerfulness successful Bihar for 2 decades (barring a mates of years successful between). For the purposes of this essay, a chronological attack volition assistance america navigate this analyzable past much effectively. Thus, we statesman the communicative of the BJP’s ascent from its earliest avatar arsenic the Jana Sangh, which was founded successful 1951 and fought its archetypal electoral conflict successful 1952.

From Independence to the SVD authorities (1947-1967)

This was the play instantly aft Independence, agelong earlier Jharkhand had been carved retired of Bihar, and erstwhile the Congress enjoyed electoral dominance and ideological hegemony. The beingness of the Jana Sangh was scattered, but it was important successful areas that present autumn nether Jharkhand. This was owed to assorted reasons, specified arsenic the beingness of larger municipality spaces, the emergence of competing labour national groups successful the industries that had travel up successful these areas, and the enactment done by the RSS among tribal communities. The Jana Sangh’s beingness was, however, negligible successful bluish and cardinal Bihar. At the time, the Jana Sangh did not person a important beingness among the upper-caste communities specified arsenic Bhumihars, who present signifier a cardinal enactment basal for the BJP. The enactment of Shri Krishna Sinha, the archetypal Chief Minister of Bihar and an influential Congress leader, played a important relation successful keeping overmuch of the precocious castes wrong the Congress fold. The Congress inactive possessed the aura and power of being the enactment of the state struggle. Interestingly, the Communist Party of India (CPI) besides had Bhumihar leaders, including the influential workplace person Sahajanand Saraswati. In each this, the Jana Sangh remained restricted to municipality and tribal pockets of what is present Jharkhand, portion it had immoderate beingness among the Yadav community. On average, it secured astir 20 seats successful Assembly elections successful undivided Bihar (primarily successful southbound Bihar, present Jharkhand) till the 1967 Assembly election. What was it that chipped distant astatine the dominance of the Congress and led to the emergence of anti-Congress parties specified arsenic the Jana Sangh?

In 1966-67, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were severely affected by a drought that led to a famine which officially claimed much than 70,000 lives, fractional of them successful Bihar. There was an acute shortage of nutrient for radical and fodder for livestock. This humanitarian situation led to governmental upheaval, striking astatine the dominance of the Congress and changing the chemistry connected the ground. It not lone brought into absorption the alleviation enactment done by the non-Congress parties but besides the coordination among societal and governmental formations, thing that had not happened before.

The concern gave emergence to the beginnings of coordination among the non-Congress parties, says Ram Bahadur Rai, president of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts and erstwhile exertion of Jansatta. “Relief enactment was being tally of people by the government, but besides by Jayaprakash Narayan (JP) and the RSS. At the time, K.N. Govindacharya (former wide caput of the BJP) was the RSS zila pracharak (district in-charge) successful Patna, aft having completed his MSc from Benaras Hindu University. He approached JP and asked him to person a look astatine the alleviation enactment being done by the RSS,” Rai says. JP was past not successful favour of the RSS, but helium did sojourn the alleviation camps and made nationalist statements appreciating the efforts. This was the opening of the RSS and JP coming closer, which yet led to the Jana Sangh being portion of the anti-Emergency question led by JP. The resentment against the Congress was truthful large that the past Chief Minister Krishna Ballabh Sahay mislaid the 1967 Bihar Assembly predetermination to the navigator of the Raja of Ramgarh. This was a important event, and for the archetypal time, it besides led to a displacement successful enactment of the Kayastha community, to which Sahay belonged, from the Congress to JP.

The elections of 1967, some for the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, were highly important arsenic they marked the emergence of an absorption to the Congress for the archetypal time. In these elections, Samyukta Vidhayak Dal (SVD) governments — a conjugation of Opposition parties — were formed for the archetypal clip successful respective States. Some of the constituent parties were not aligned with each different successful immoderate way, but unneurotic they had much seats than the Congress, starring to the enactment of these SVD governments. In Bihar, the SVD authorities included 2 socialist parties — the Praja Socialist Party (PSP) and the Samyukta Socialist Party (SSP) — the CPI, and the Jana Sangh. Thus, wrong 2 decades of its beingness successful Bihar, the Jana Sangh entered authorities and began to mitigate immoderate of its governmental marginalisation owed to its relation with JP.

From Emergency to Palampur and Mandal (1968-1989)

The short-lived SVD governments provided an illustration of however to instrumentality connected the ascendant Congress politically, portion besides revealing the inherent responsibility lines wrong Opposition unity. The 1970s began with a boost successful the Congress’s morale pursuing its triumph successful the 1971 Lok Sabha predetermination nether Indira Gandhi, who led the run with the “garibi hatao” slogan. The momentum was further reinforced by India’s occurrence against Pakistan successful the Bangladesh Liberation War. However, the sheen soon began to deterioration disconnected amid rising inflation, economical stagnation, and allegations of corruption. The discontent spilled onto the streets, with students rising up successful protestation — the Gujarat Navnirman Sena led the protests successful Gujarat successful 1973-74 and the Bihar Chhatra Sangharsh Samiti successful Bihar during the aforesaid period. Students’ unions from crossed Bihar were invited to beryllium portion of a larger State-wide platform, with Lalu Prasad arsenic president. The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the pupil assemblage of the RSS, was besides portion of it. The question marked the emergence of leaders similar the precocious Sushil Kumar Modi, who went connected to go the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, existent Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, erstwhile Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, and the precocious Ram Vilas Paswan. The students’ agitation transformed into the Sampoorna Kranti (Total Revolution) question led by JP against the imposition of Emergency by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi successful June 1975.

The socialists, the Jana Sangh, and the ABVP were afloat aligned successful this movement. The post-Emergency predetermination successful 1977 saw the Janata Party, an amalgamation of anti-Congress parties, including the Jana Sangh, travel to powerfulness astatine the Centre. Leaders specified arsenic the precocious Madhu Limaye felt that the socialists had “mainstreamed” the Jana Sangh and the RSS during this period, ending their governmental exclusion implicit questions of Hindutva. However, writer Abhishek Choudhary, who wrote the well-regarded Vajpayee: The Ascent of the Hindu Right 1924-77, does not see this to beryllium the case. “I don’t truly hold [with the ‘mainstreaming’ narrative], due to the fact that astatine that clip the concern was specified that to combat the Congress behemoth they needed the Jana Sangh. Earlier, the Jana Sangh had tried to necktie up with right-wing outfits similar the Hindu Mahasabha and the Ram Rajya Parishad, which had obscurantist views connected caste reforms etc., but they could not [form alliances] due to the fact that of these precise reasons. The socialists and others saw that the Jana Sangh had a beingness successful electoral authorities and was not similar the Mahasabha and different specified parties. Of course, determination were ideological differences, similar Madhu Limaye was profoundly opposed to them, portion Madhu Dandavate was successful favour of extending the payment of uncertainty to the Jana Sangh. Most, however, were successful favour of giving the Jana Sangh a chance, including Jayaprakash Narayan, arsenic the concern developed. So, this ‘mainstreaming’ statement is lone partially existent arsenic the Sangh Parivar was a portion of astir each movements successful Independent India, from anti-cow slaughter to V.P. Singh’s anti-corruption movement. The Jana Sangh-BJP was bound to turn bigger with time, due to the fact that it had an organised and disciplined cadre and was determined to get power,” Mr. Choudhary said successful an interrogation to The Hindu.

The authorities that the Janata Party formed successful Bihar was led by Karpoori Thakur, who introduced the 26% preservation argumentation for the Backward Classes successful authorities jobs. The Jana Sangh, however, did not stay successful the Janata Party for long, yet walking retired implicit the contented of dual rank of the enactment and the RSS. The Jana Sangh leaders refused to springiness up their RSS membership, starring to a divided successful the Janata Party and prompting caller elections. The Jana Sangh subsequently re-emerged arsenic the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) successful 1980. In Bihar, the BJP’s archetypal president was Kailashpati Mishra, a dominating unit successful the State unit. However, the bequest of its relation with the socialists during the Janata Party years was evident. The BJP, successful its archetypal convention, declared pancha nishthas, oregon 5 guiding principles, that would usher its governmental path. These included the committedness to Gandhian socialism, described by the enactment arsenic a Gandhian attack to socio-economic issues starring to the constitution of a samaras samaj escaped from exploitation. The 1980s were a play of churn for the BJP nationally, starting with the disappointing results successful the 1985 Lok Sabha election, followed by the enactment uncovering communal origin with the Opposition implicit the Bofors scandal, and culminating with the 1989 Palampur Resolution, successful which the enactment declared its enactment for the request to conception a Ram Temple astatine the tract of the Babri Masjid successful Ayodhya. In 1990, different displacement occurred erstwhile the past V.P. Singh-led National Front authorities (in which the BJP was a conjugation partner) declared that it would instrumentality the recommendations of the Mandal Commission study connected preservation for the Other Backward Classes successful authorities jobs and acquisition institutions. This Mandal-Mandir churn came to specify Indian authorities for the adjacent 3 decades and continues to bash so. 

Mandir, Mandal, and Nitish (1990- )

The twelvemonth 1990 saw BJP person L.K. Advani embark connected a Ram Rath Yatra to mobilise enactment for the operation of the Ram Temple successful Ayodhya, an lawsuit that turbocharged past Chief Minister Lalu Prasad’s governmental career, arsenic it was successful Bihar that Advani was arrested connected the orders of Lalu, ensuring his spot successful governmental history. While the BJP managed to amass enactment successful some municipality and agrarian areas and crossed sections of nine that it hadn’t been capable to mobilise before, Lalu’s determination to apprehension Advani and the determination to instrumentality the preservation for the OBCs consolidated his “MY” (MuslimYadav) ballot bank. During the 1990s, however, determination were besides 3 events that influenced the advancement of the BJP arsenic the main rod of authorities successful the State. The archetypal was the exit of erstwhile Union Minister George Fernandes and Nitish Kumar from the Janata Dal, led by Lalu Prasad, to signifier the Samata Party successful 1994. This formation, portion not precise beardown connected insubstantial and having travel a cropper successful the 1995 polls aft a tie-up with the Communist Party of India (MarxistLeninist), aboriginal went connected to state with the BJP. This confederation brought the muchneeded socialist tinge to the BJP’s mostly Hindutva appeal. Before that happened, however, the BJP — perchance owed to the divided wrong the Janata Dal — secured, for the archetypal time, the station of Leader of the Opposition successful the Bihar Assembly aft the 1995 election. Meanwhile, the subalternisation of the BJP, oregon the simplification of what is termed “savarna prabhutva” wrong the enactment leadership, was continuing apace, with Sushil Kumar Modi occupying an important presumption wrong the State portion and driving its organisational structure. The bifurcation of Bihar successful 2000, which led to the instauration of Jharkhand, meant that the BJP had to rethink its strategy for what was nary longer a immense catchment country for itself. The intricacies of societal justness authorities present had to beryllium joined with Hindutva concerns.

In North India, including Bihar, past BJP wide caput K.N. Govindacharya had been advancing his “social engineering” task of appropriating and promoting OBC and backward people leadership. This task got a boost successful 1995, albeit successful a antithetic way, erstwhile the Samata Party allied with the BJP. In an interrogation with this author, arsenic portion of an nonfiction successful the publication The Lives of Muslims successful India (Routledge), Advani says: “It was the [BJP] nationalist assembly gathering successful Mumbai successful 1995, erstwhile I heard that George [Fernandes] was unwell and admitted to a infirmary successful Mumbai, I went to spot him. Nitish Kumar was besides with him astatine that time, and I invited some to be the gathering of the council. George said helium was unwell, but Nitish agreed, and I judge that is erstwhile we started getting closer, much than a decennary aft the Emergency.” This confederation added to the BJP’s entreaty crossed assorted sections of nine and strengthened its presumption wrong the unsocial societal justiceoriented governmental scenery of the State. The 2nd lawsuit that strengthened the BJP’s governmental enactment basal was the pursuit of the fodder scam cases — from probe to condemnation — by its enactment leadership. Former Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad donned his lawyer’s robes to combat these cases, which yet led to the labelling of the Lalu Prasad authorities arsenic 1 entangled successful corruption. It besides highlighted the governance shortage nether his leadership, giving the BJP a potent communicative of “jungle raj” to leverage successful successive elections.

Lalu Prasad resigned arsenic Chief Minister successful 1997 aft the CBI filed a chargesheet successful the fodder scam and installed his wife, Rabri Devi, successful his place, this clip with the enactment of the Congress. According to many, this marked the decease knell for the Congress successful the State, wherever it has been reduced from a ascendant unit to a inferior conjugation partner. The BJP and the NDA were capable to capitalise connected this concern by attracting the enactment basal of the precocious castes, who had antecedently voted for the Congress, arsenic good arsenic non-Yadav OBCs specified arsenic Kurmis, who were drawn to the confederation owed to Nitish Kumar.

These 3 events tin beryllium seen arsenic portion of a continuum that led to the eventual triumph of the NDA successful the 2005 Assembly predetermination and Nitish Kumar’s emergence to the station of Chief Minister. The confederation betwixt the BJP and the Janata Dal(U) (a caller avatar of the Samata Party pursuing its merger with the Janata Dal faction led by Sharad Yadav and the Lok Shakti party) has had its stock of hiccups. During the aboriginal years of the NDA authorities successful the State, Nitish Kumar’s efforts to interruption the Muslim consolidation down the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) — done his advocacy of Pasmanda authorities and initiatives specified arsenic pushing for a field of Aligarh Muslim University successful Kishanganj — met with absorption from sections of the BJP’s State unit. The advent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi connected the nationalist signifier had its ain implications for Bihar. In 2013, erstwhile Narendra Modi — past Chief Minister of Gujarat — was named the BJP’s premier ministerial candidate, Nitish Kumar walked retired of the NDA and contested the 2015 Assembly predetermination successful confederation with the RJD and the Congress, securing a victory. In 2017, helium returned to the NDA. The BJP-JD(U) confederation won the 2020 Assembly predetermination successful Bihar, but Nitish Kumar erstwhile again divided from the BJP successful 2022 and tied up with the RJD and the Congress, lone to instrumentality to the BJP successful aboriginal 2024.

While Nitish Kumar went connected to instrumentality oath arsenic Chief Minister 9 times, his predominant governmental U-turns meant that the BJP had learnt its lessons. The BJP, particularly aft the predetermination of Narendra Modi arsenic Prime Minister, has pursued a strategy of salami-slicing the OBC ballot slope successful Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, with non-Yadav OBC communities switching enactment to the BJP. However, this was not capable successful the past to trounce the Mahagathbandhan alliance, erstwhile Nitish Kumar had joined hands with Lalu Prasad.

That concern changed a small successful 2020, erstwhile the BJP won much seats than the JD(U) successful the Assembly election. This result was the effect of not conscionable the beingness of Backward Class leaders similar Nityanand Rai but besides the enactment from women, often considered a “casteless category”. Their ballot accrued to the NDA arsenic a whole, benefiting some the BJP and Nitish Kumar, who has assiduously courted this section. The emergence of women arsenic a governmental unit added a caller magnitude to the mostly caste-driven authorities of Bihar, fuelling optimism successful the BJP ranks. While Nitish Kumar continues arsenic Chief Minister contempt his enactment holding less seats than the BJP, his declining wellness has raised questions implicit the enactment of some his enactment and the alliance. Meanwhile, RJD person Lalu Prasad has besides taken a backmost spot to his lad Tejashwi Yadav. In specified a scenario, the large question successful the upcoming Assembly predetermination successful Bihar is whether the BJP is acceptable to spell it alone, oregon astatine the precise least, assertion the Chief Minister’s station for itself portion remaining successful confederation with Nitish Kumar. The upper-caste Hindutva ballot basal is inactive firmly with the BJP; erstwhile elections person shown that it has besides expanded its enactment among non-Yadav OBC communities and the Extremely Backward Classes (EBC).

The 2025 predetermination could yet spot the BJP ascend to the Chief Minister’s station successful Bihar, culminating its agelong governmental travel successful the State.