Today a decisive turn has come in the politics of India when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered a historic victory in the 2026 assembly elections in West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry. These results broke the strongholds of regional parties and clearly indicated that the era of ‘politics of satraps’ is coming to an end. It has become clear from the results of 2026 assembly elections that voters are now giving preference to development and good governance rather than traditional parties. Due to this, the political hold of the regional satraps is weakening.

West Bengal: End of 15 years of ‘Didi’ rule and historic rise of BJP

In West Bengal, BJP did what once seemed impossible. BJP won 202 out of 294 seats, ending the 15-year rule of Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress (TMC). BJP easily crossed the majority mark of 148. TMC was reduced to just 71 seats. This change symbolized not just a change of power, but a structural change in the politics of Bengal.

An important aspect related to the election process was that the names of about 27 lakh voters in the state were arbitrarily removed from the voter list, which was challenged in the Supreme Court and was seen as a serious attack on the basic principles of democracy. Critics believe that this move affected the election results and will remain a matter of concern in the future.

This victory of BJP strengthened the party’s penetration in a state which had been opposing its expansion for a long time. The party secured 45% vote share in this election as compared to 38% vote share in 2021, while TMC’s vote share fell from 48% to 40.94%. It is clear from this that now the popularity of ‘Didi’ and the attraction of TMC led by her is fading.

Assam: BJP’s victory for the third consecutive time and Congress’s defeat

In Assam, BJP led NDA created history by forming the government for the third consecutive time. NDA achieved two-third majority by winning a record 102 seats in the 126-member assembly. BJP contested 90 seats and won 82, while its allies Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) and Assam Gana Parishad (AGP) won 10 seats each. This is the first time that BJP has won majority on its own in the state.

Earlier in 2021 and 2016 it had got 60-60 seats. On the other hand, Congress’s performance was very poor and it was leading in only 23 seats. Allies like AIUDF and Raijor Dal got 2 seats each.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma won his Jalukbari seat with a lead of 40,000 votes, while state Congress president Gaurav Gogoi lost his Jorhat seat. This victory of BJP has proved that the hold of regional parties is no longer that strong and voters are expressing confidence in the national party.

Puducherry: NDA’s return and Rangasamy’s rising stature.

BJP led NDA returned to power in Puducherry also. Chief Minister N. Rangasamy’s All India N.R. Congress (AINRC) won 12 seats, while BJP won 4 seats. In the total 30-seat assembly, NDA crossed the majority mark by winning 18 seats. This is the first time that a government in the Union Territory has been re-elected for the second consecutive time.

Rangasamy won from two seats – Thattanchavady and Mangalam. His victory established AINRC as the largest party in the state and gave it an opportunity to strongly raise the demand for full statehood for Puducherry in the future. This result shows that even in small states, regional parties now have to coordinate with national forces like BJP, otherwise they will be marginalized.

End of satrapy politics and new political reality

The results of these three states have made it clear that the ‘politics of satraps’ is now counting its last breaths:

• The crushing defeat of Mamata Banerjee, who was once the face of the opposition at the national level, has not only put her party’s existence in jeopardy but has also created a leadership void in the entire opposition camp.
• In Assam, Congress is going through its worst phase and regional parties have become completely dependent on the crutch of NDA.
• Even in Puducherry, AINRC’s success would not have been possible without the alliance with BJP.

The results of West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 have surprised all the political pundits. BJP overturned the 15-year political history of the state by capturing 206 seats in the 294-seat assembly. But even greater charisma was shown by the party in what was considered to be Mamata Banerjee’s impenetrable fort, i.e. 115 Muslim-dominated seats of Bengal. In these seats where the population of Muslim voters is 30 percent or more, BJP captured 39 seats despite not having its traditional vote bank. How was this possible after all?

The first and most important reason is the fragmentation of TMC’s ‘unbiased’ Muslim vote bank.

Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress (TMC) had monopolized the Muslim vote bank for the last one and a half decade. In 2021, TMC had won 43 out of 44 Muslim-dominated seats. But this time this vote bank of TMC got divided between Congress, Left and Humayun Kabir’s new party Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP).

Out of 43 seats in Murshidabad, Malda and North Dinajpur districts, BJP got only 8 seats in 2021, which increased to 19 in 2026. The biggest reason for this reversal was the dispersion of Muslim votes, not their inclination towards BJP. For example, in Murshidabad’s Rani Nagar, the Congress won by 79,423 votes, while the BJP got an indirect advantage due to the vote split between TMC (76,722) and the Left (48,587).

Double game of ‘hot’ issues of Kaaba-Kali and Babri Masjid

BJP capitalized on the cultural identity of Bengal in its favor as part of its election strategy. After TMC MP Sayani Ghosh sang ‘Mere Dil Mein Hai Kaba’ in a video, BJP leaders made it a fight of ‘Kali vs Kaba’. Amit Shah and Yogi Adityanath created the narrative that only Mother Kali and Durga reside in the soul of Bengal. On the other hand, BJP made a direct connection with Bengali identity by adopting the slogan of ‘Jai Maa Kali’ instead of ‘Jai Shri Ram’.

The Babri Masjid controversy created a rift in the Muslim vote bank. Suspended TMC MLA Humayun Kabir announced the construction of a second Babri Masjid in Rezinagar, Murshidabad and formed his party AJUP. BJP termed this issue as ‘appeasement politics’ and used it as a weapon to polarize Hindu voters. Home Minister Amit Shah clearly said that ‘Babri Masjid will not be allowed to be built in Bengal’.

Kabir’s party worked to cut off the Muslim vote bank of TMC. As a result, Kabir himself won Rejinagar and Nauda seats, giving a huge blow to TMC. BJP did not get Muslim votes, but their division became a major obstacle in the way of TMC’s victory.

The ‘secret’ effect of SIR and the game of 91 lakh voters

Before the elections, the Election Commission removed the names of about 91 lakh voters from the list under Special Intensive Revision (SIR), due to which the total voters reduced from 7.66 crore to 6.75 crore. Its biggest impact was in minority dominated districts like Murshidabad, Malda and North 24 Parganas. Experts believe that SIR forced Muslim voters to scatter among other parties instead of uniting and voting in favor of TMC.

‘Zero’ Muslim candidates, but victory flag everywhere

BJP had fielded 8 Muslim candidates in 2021, but not even one won. This time the party did not give ticket to even a single Muslim candidate and completely bet on polarization of Hindu voters. This bet proved correct. Where TMC was ahead in only 30 Muslim dominated seats and lagged in 12. BJP gave the message that ‘Votes come from development, not from any particular community.’

The formula for this historic victory of BJP is very clear. BJP won 45% of Muslim dominated seats because the Muslim vote got divided among three or four parties, while the Hindu vote united and stood in favor of BJP. While TMC’s vote share was 40.80%, BJP’s vote share was only 5% more (45.64%), but the difference in seats turned into a huge lead.