In 2014, soon after taking over as BJP party president, Amit Shah declared his goal was a ‘Congress mukt Bharat’, a phrase that reflected BJP’s drive to decimate Congress as its principal adversary. Seven years later as four states and a Union territory await assembly election results, Congress and its allies govern only five states. But the narrative of these 2021 elections has shown that BJP’s dominance is not unchallenged. There are other adversaries still definitely resisting: India’s regional bosses.
In Kerala, giant hoardings of CM Pinarayi Vijayan dominate verdant green landscapes. He is the principal focus of these elections, described by locals as “Modi in a mundu”, positioning himself as Kerala’s “Irattachankan” or big-chested strongman. In Tamil Nadu, the two Read More
