On the day of BS Yeddyurappa’s swearing-in as Karnataka chief minister, the BJP moved one step closer to what the party calls “Congress-free India”. The saffron party now holds or shares power in 21 of the 29 states.
The last time a single political party had such a huge political footprint across India was 25 years ago. At the end of 1993, the Congress held 16 of then 26 states. 15 on its own and one in an alliance.
After the historic 2014 general elections when the Narendra Modi government came to power by winning 282 of the 543 seats, the BJP held just seven states. The Congress that ruled 13 states then is now down to two states; Punjab, Mizoram and the union territory of Puducherry.
PM Modi had attacked the Congress during a recent election rally by saying that after the Karnataka election results were declared, the party would not be Indian National Congress but “PPP Congress” (Punjab, Puducherry, Parivar Congress).
The Congress has had a string of losses in assembly polls, barring Punjab last year, since the BJP-led government assumed office at the centre.
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