Editing Bharatiya Janata Party

{{Short description|Indian political party}}
{{Redirect|BJP}}
{{Pp-semi-indef}}
{{Pp-move|small=yes}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox Indian political party
| party_name        = Bharatiya Janata Party
| logo              = [[File:Bharatiya Janata Party (icon).svg|150px]]
| abbreviation      = BJP<ref>{{cite web |title=History and Development of Bharatiya Janata Party |url=https://www.bjp.org/historyanddevelopment |website=Bharatiya Janata Party |access-date=27 March 2025}}</ref>
| colorcode         = {{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
| president         = [[J. P. Nadda]]<ref>{{Cite news|author=Ananya Das|date=20 January 2020|title=Jagat Prakash Nadda: BJP's new national president rises through the ranks, faces several challenges|work=Zee News|url=https://zeenews.india.com/india/jagat-prakash-nadda-bjps-new-national-president-rises-through-the-ranks-faces-several-challenges-2258301.html|url-status=live|access-date=16 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328152910/https://zeenews.india.com/india/jagat-prakash-nadda-bjps-new-national-president-rises-through-the-ranks-faces-several-challenges-2258301.html|archive-date=28 March 2020}}</ref>
| general_secretary  = '''General Secretary''' ('''Organisation''')''':'''<br />B. L. Santhosh<ref>{{Cite news|author=Gyan Varma|date=15 July 2019|title=Meet BL Santhosh, newly appointed general secretary of BJP|work=live mint|url=https://www.livemint.com/politics/news/meet-bl-santhosh-newly-appointed-general-secretary-of-bjp-1563168633822.html|url-status=live|access-date=16 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328152911/https://www.livemint.com/politics/news/meet-bl-santhosh-newly-appointed-general-secretary-of-bjp-1563168633822.html|archive-date=28 March 2020}}</ref><br />{{Hidden|Other General Secretaries|'''Joint General Secretary:'''<br />[[Shiv Prakash]]<br />'''General Secretaries:'''<br />[[Arun Singh (Indian politician)|Arun Singh]]<br />[[Kailash Vijayvargiya]]<br />[[Dushyant Kumar Gautam]]<br />Tarun Chugh<br />[[Vinod Tawde]]<br />Sunil Bansal<br />[[Bandi Sanjay Kumar]]<br />[[Radha Mohan Das Agarwal]]}}
| treasurer = [[Rajesh Agarwal]]<ref>{{Cite news|date=27 September 2020|title=Rajesh Agarwal gets BJP treasurer post|work=United News of India|url=http://www.uniindia.com/rajesh-agarwal-gets-bjp-treasurer-post/north/news/2178686.html|url-status=live|access-date=12 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201017113913/http://www.uniindia.com/rajesh-agarwal-gets-bjp-treasurer-post/north/news/2178686.html|archive-date=17 October 2020}}</ref>
| presidium = [[National Executive of the Bharatiya Janata Party|National Executive]]<ref name="Constitution">{{Cite web|title=Bharatiya Janata Party Constitution|url=https://www.bjp.org/en/constitution|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171118173055/http://www.bjp.org/images/pdf_2012_h/constitution_eng_jan_10_2013.pdf|archive-date=18 November 2017|access-date=15 May 2020|website=BJP official website|publisher=Bharatiya Janata Party}}</ref>
| ppchairman        = [[Narendra Modi]]<br /> ([[Prime Minister of India|Prime Minister]])<ref name=":3000">{{Cite news|date=12 June 2019|title=BJP announces new parliamentary committee; Modi leader in Lok Sabha, Rajnath his deputy|work=India Today|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bjp-announces-parliamentary-party-executive-committee-1547512-2019-06-12|url-status=live|access-date=16 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406141325/https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bjp-announces-parliamentary-party-executive-committee-1547512-2019-06-12|archive-date=6 April 2020}}</ref>
| loksabha_leader   = [[Narendra Modi]]<br /> ([[Leader of the House in Lok Sabha]])<ref name=":3000"/>
| rajyasabha_leader = [[J. P. Nadda]]<br /> ([[Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha]])<ref>{{cite web |title=Leader of the House |url=https://sansad.in/rs/about/leader-of-the-house |website=[[Rajya Sabha]] |access-date=27 March 2025}}</ref>
| foundation        = {{Start date and age|df=yes|p=y|1980|04|06}}<ref name=":4000">{{Cite news|date=6 April 2019|title=BJP's foundation day: Brief history of the achievements and failures of the party|work=The Indian Express|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/research/bhartiya-janata-party-narendra-modi-bjp-bjps-37th-foundation-day-brief-history-of-the-achievements-and-failures-of-the-party-4601637/|url-status=live|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190511143721/https://indianexpress.com/article/research/bhartiya-janata-party-narendra-modi-bjp-bjps-37th-foundation-day-brief-history-of-the-achievements-and-failures-of-the-party-4601637/|archive-date=11 May 2019}}</ref>
| founder           = {{ublist|[[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]]|[[L. K. Advani|Lal Krishna Advani]]<ref name=":3001">{{Cite news|date=23 May 2019|title=What you need to know about India's BJP|work=AlJazeera|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/05/india-bjp-190523053850803.html|url-status=live|access-date=16 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200513075856/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/05/india-bjp-190523053850803.html|archive-date=13 May 2020}}</ref>}} 
{{Collapsible list
| title = {{nobold|''...{{nbsp}}and others''<ref name="founders">{{Cite web |title=BJP's 43 years: How it emerged from Jana Sangh and became world's largest party |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bjp-foundation-day-journey-from-jana-sangh-modi-shah-vajpayee-advani-2356698-2023-04-06 |access-date=2024-03-24 |author=Kabool Ahmad|website=India Today |date=6 April 2023 |language=en |archive-date=2 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240102123718/https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bjp-foundation-day-journey-from-jana-sangh-modi-shah-vajpayee-advani-2356698-2023-04-06 |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
|[[Murli Manohar Joshi]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jain |first=Praveen |date=2024-01-07 |title=Murli Manohar Joshi turns 90: Well-wishers flock to Raisina Road to celebrate life of BJP stalwart |url=https://theprint.in/in-pictures/murli-manohar-joshi-turns-90-well-wishers-flock-to-raisina-road-to-celebrate-life-of-bjp-stalwart/1913267/ |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=ThePrint |language=en-US}}</ref>
|[[Nanaji Deshmukh]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bharat Ratna for Pranab, Nanaji Deshmukh and Bhupen Hazarika |url=http://www.bihartimes.in/newsbihar/2019/jan/newsbihar25jan12.html |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=www.bihartimes.in}}</ref>
|[[K. R. Malkani]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sir |first=Sp |date=2021-04-29 |title=K R Malkani - The Sindhu World Sindhi Author: The Sindh Story: Sindhi Politician: Political Mysteries |url=https://thesindhuworld.com/k-r-malkani/ |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=The Sindhu World |language=en-US}}</ref>
|[[Sikandar Bakht]]<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-04-06 |title=कौन थे बीजेपी के इकलौते मुस्लिम फाउंडर सिकंदर बख्त? जानिए कैसे थामा पार्टी का साथ |url=https://www.abplive.com/news/india/bjp-foundation-day-who-was-bjp-muslim-founder-sikandar-bakht-political-career-profile-in-hindi-2658177 |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=www.abplive.com |language=hi}}</ref>
|[[Vijay Kumar Malhotra]]
|[[Vijaya Raje Scindia]]<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jain |first=Devaki |work=The Citizen (India) |url=https://www.thecitizen.in/index.php/en/NewsDetail/index/7/20759/The-Maharani-who-Founded-the-BJP |title=The Maharani who founded the BJP |date=14 August 2021 }}</ref> 
|[[Bhairon Singh Shekhawat]]<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-05-22 |title=Rajput votes at stake in Rajasthan, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat legacy a new front in BJP, Cong battle |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/rajput-rajasthan-bhairon-singh-shekhawat-bjp-congress-8623357/ |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>
|[[Shanta Kumar]]
|[[Ram Jethmalani]]
|[[Jagannathrao Joshi]]
}}
| headquarters      = 6-A, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg, <br />[[New Delhi]], Delhi, India<ref>{{Cite web |title=BJP Gets A New Address; Soul Of New Office Is The Party Worker, Says PM Modi|url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/bjp-gets-a-new-address-today-pm-modi-to-inaugurate-multi-storey-office-1814043|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406141326/https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/bjp-gets-a-new-address-today-pm-modi-to-inaugurate-multi-storey-office-1814043|archive-date=6 April 2020|access-date=16 March 2020 |website=NDTV.com}}</ref>
| eci               = [[List of political parties in India#National parties|National Party]]{{sfn|Election Commission|2013}}
| alliance          = [[National Democratic Alliance|NDA]] ([[India|All India]])<ref name="bjp0right">{{Cite news|author=Devesh Kumar|date=20 May 2014|title=BJP + 29 Parties=National Democratic Alliance|work=NDTV|url=https://www.ndtv.com/elections-news/bjp-29-parties-national-democratic-alliance-562972|url-status=live|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406141401/https://www.ndtv.com/elections-news/bjp-29-parties-national-democratic-alliance-562972|archive-date=6 April 2020}}</ref><br />
[[North-East Democratic Alliance|NEDA]] ([[Northeast India]])<ref>{{Cite news|date=13 March 2019|title=BJP seals alliances in Northeast, aims 22 LS seats|work=The Hindu Business Line|url=https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/national/bjp-seals-alliances-in-northeast-aims-22-ls-seats/article26519732.ece |url-status=live|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200317165853/https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/national/bjp-seals-alliances-in-northeast-aims-22-ls-seats/article26519732.ece|archive-date=17 March 2020}}</ref><br />[[Kutami]] ([[Andhra Pradesh]])<br />[[Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (2018–present)|MDA]] ([[Meghalaya]])<br />[[Maha Yuti|MY]] ([[Maharashtra]])<ref>{{cite web |author1=India Today Video Desk |title=Our alliance is not going to break: Eknath Shinde dismisses rift rumours |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/video/our-alliance-is-not-going-to-break-eknath-shinde-dismisses-rift-rumours-2687879-2025-03-02 |website=[[India Today]] |access-date=27 March 2025 |date=2 March 2025}}</ref> <br/> [[AIADMK-led Alliance]]<br/> ([[Tamil Nadu]]) 
| loksabha_seats    = {{Composition bar|240|543|hex={{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}} ('''540''' MPs & '''1''' Vacant)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Party Position pdf|url=http://loksabhaph.nic.in/writereaddata/Updates/EventLSS_637191127420791113_31994.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200317173437/http://loksabhaph.nic.in/writereaddata/Updates/EventLSS_637191127420791113_31994.pdf|archive-date=17 March 2020|access-date=17 March 2020}}</ref>
| rajyasabha_seats  = {{Composition bar|98|245|hex={{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}} ('''225''' MPs & '''10''' Vacant)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/bjps-rajya-sabha-tally-dips-to-86-nda-at-101-party-below-majority-mark-6109105 | title=BJP's Rajya Sabha Tally Dips, NDA Now 4 Below Majority Mark }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Alphabetical Party Position in the Rajya Sabha|url=https://rajyasabha.nic.in/rsnew/member_site/partymemberlist.aspx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190604121829/https://rajyasabha.nic.in/rsnew/member_site/partymemberlist.aspx|archive-date=4 June 2019|access-date=22 September 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Strengthwise Party Position in the Rajya Sabha|url=http://164.100.47.5/NewMembers/partystrength.aspx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170606134311/http://164.100.47.5/NewMembers/partystrength.aspx|archive-date=6 June 2017|publisher=Rajya Sabha}}</ref><!-- Please do not change without a more up-to-date reference --><!-- Seats after Rajya Sabha election, 2020 -->
| state_seats_name  = [[State Legislative Assembly (India)|State Legislative Assemblies]]
| state_seats       = {{Composition bar|1656|4126|hex={{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
('''4118''' MLAs &
'''8''' Vacant)
([[#Current seats in State Legislative Assemblies|see complete list]])
| state2_seats_name = [[State Legislative Council (India)|State Legislative Councils]]
| state2_seats      = {{Composition bar|165|426|hex={{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
('''403''' MLCs & '''23''' Vacant)
([[#Current seats in State Legislative councils|see complete list]])
| no_states         = {{Composition bar|20|31|hex={{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}} ('''28''' States and '''3''' UTs)<ref>{{Cite news|date=26 November 2019|title=BJP gains back Madhya Pradesh in just 15 months after losing it|work=India Today|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bjp-s-shivraj-singh-chouhan-sworn-in-as-madhya-pradesh-cm-for-fourth-time-1658867-2020-03-23|url-status=live|access-date=23 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211119202332/https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bjp-s-shivraj-singh-chouhan-sworn-in-as-madhya-pradesh-cm-for-fourth-time-1658867-2020-03-23|archive-date=19 November 2021}}</ref>
| ideology          = {{ubl|class=nowrap||[[Conservatism]] ([[Conservatism in India|Indian]])<ref name="mathewjoh">* {{Cite book|last1=Johnson|first1=Matthew|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=smxQDwAAQBAJ&q=BJP+a+conservatism|title=Conservatism and Ideology|last2=Garnett|first2=Mark |last3=Walker|first3=David M|date=2017|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=978-1-317-52900-2|pages=45–50|access-date=8 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061245/https://books.google.com/books?id=smxQDwAAQBAJ&q=BJP+a+conservatism|archive-date=14 April 2023|url-status=live}}
* Björn Goldstein (2015) The unconscious Indianization of 'Western' conservatism – is Indian conservatism a universal model?, Global Discourse, 5:1, 44–65, {{doi|10.1080/23269995.2014.946315}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Mazumdar|first1=Surajit|date=2017|title=Neo-Liberalism and the Rise of Right-Wing Conservatism in India|url=https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/id/eprint/93182|journal=Desenvolvimento Em Debate|via=[[Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich]]|volume=5|issue=1|pages=115–131|doi=10.51861/ded.dmds.1.011|access-date=24 April 2022|archive-date=14 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061248/https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/93182/|url-status=live| issn = 2176-9257}}
* {{cite book|title=Ideology and Identity: The Changing Party Systems of India|last1=Chhibber|first1=Pradeep. K.|last2=Verma|first2=Rahul|isbn=978-0-19-062390-6|lccn=2018001733|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nJRqDwAAQBAJ|pages=50–150|year=2018|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|access-date=2 May 2022|archive-date=14 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061225/https://books.google.com/books?id=nJRqDwAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>
|[[Neoliberalism]]<ref name="Surajit 2017">* {{Cite journal|last=Mazumdar|first=Surajit|date=2017|title=Neo-Liberalism and the Rise of Right-Wing Conservatism in India|url=https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/id/eprint/93182 |url-status=live|journal=Desenvolvimento Em Debate|volume=5|issue=1 |pages=115–131|doi=10.51861/ded.dmds.1.011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061248/https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/93182/|archive-date=14 April 2023|access-date=24 April 2022|via=[[Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich]]}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Gopalakrishnan|first1=Shankar|title=Defining, Constructing and Policing a 'New India': Relationship between Neoliberalism and Hindutva|journal=Economic & Political Weekly|date=7 July 2006|volume=41|issue=26|pages=2803–2813|jstor=4418408|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4418408|access-date=26 September 2020|archive-date=17 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201017234207/https://www.jstor.org/stable/4418408|url-status=live}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Wilson|first1=Kalpana|last2=Ung Loh|first2=Jennifer|last3=Purewal|first3=Navtej|title=Gender, Violence and the Neoliberal State in India|journal=Feminist Review|date=July 2018|volume=119|issue=1|pages=1–6|doi=10.1057/s41305-018-0109-8|s2cid=149814002|url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/25540/1/wilson-ung-loh-purewal-introduction-gender-violence-and-the-neoliberal-state-in-India.doc.pdf|access-date=8 November 2020|archive-date=10 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201210111943/https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/25540/1/wilson-ung-loh-purewal-introduction-gender-violence-and-the-neoliberal-state-in-India.doc.pdf|url-status=live}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Mathur|first1=Navdeep|title=The low politics of higher education: saffron branded neoliberalism and the assault on Indian universities|journal=Critical Policy Studies|date=2018|volume=12 |issue=1|pages=121–125|doi=10.1080/19460171.2017.1403343|s2cid=148842457}}</ref>
|[[Hindutva]]<ref name="Angana.p">* {{Cite book|last1=Chatterji|first1=Angana P.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zcObDwAAQBAJ&q=BJP%27s+Hindutva+ideology|title=Majoritarian State: How Hindu Nationalism Is Changing India|last2=Hansen|first2=Thomas Blom|last3=Jaffrelot|first3=Christophe|date=2019|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=978-0-19-007817-1|pages=100–130|author-link=Angana P. Chatterji|author-link2=Thomas Blom Hansen|author-link3=Christophe Jaffrelot|access-date=8 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061226/https://books.google.com/books?id=zcObDwAAQBAJ&q=BJP%27s+Hindutva+ideology|archive-date=14 April 2023|url-status=live}}
* [[Christophe Jaffrelot|Jaffrelot, Christophe]], and Cynthia Schoch. "Conclusion to Part I." In Modi's India: Hindu Nationalism and the Rise of Ethnic Democracy, 148–54. [[Princeton University Press]], 2021. {{doi|10.2307/j.ctv1dc9jzx.12}}.
* {{cite book|title=Ideology and Identity: The Changing Party Systems of India|last1=Chhibber|first1=Pradeep. K.|last2=Verma|first2=Rahul |isbn=978-0-19-062390-6|lccn=2018001733|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nJRqDwAAQBAJ|year=2018|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|access-date=2 May 2022|archive-date=14 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061225/https://books.google.com/books?id=nJRqDwAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>
|[[Hindu nationalism]]<ref>* Henrik Berglund. "Religion and Nationalism: Politics of BJP." [[Economic and Political Weekly]] 39, no. 10 (2004): 1064–70. {{JSTOR|4414737}}.
* Chhibber, Pradeep K. "State Policy, Party Politics, and the Rise of the BJP." In Democracy without Associations: Transformation of the Party System and Social Cleavages in India, 159–76. [[University of Michigan Press]], 1999. {{JSTOR|10.3998/mpub.23136.12}}.</ref>
|[[Right-wing populism]]<ref>* {{cite journal|volume=26|issue=3|journal=Democratization|first1=Duncan|last1=McDonnell|year=2019|first2=Luis|last2=Cabrera|title=The right-wing populism of India's Bharatiya Janata Party (and why comparativists should care)|pages=484–501|doi=10.1080/13510347.2018.1551885|s2cid=149464986}}
* {{Cite book|last=Özçelik|first=Ezgi|title=Right-wing Populist Governments Rhetorical Framing of Economic Inequality : the Cases of BJP in India and AKP in Turkey|publisher=Koç University|year=2019}}</ref>}}
| position          = {{nowrap|[[Right-wing politics|Right-wing]]{{sfnm|1a1=Malik|1a2=Singh|1y=1992|1pp=318–336|BBC|2012|2a1=Banerjee|2y=2005|2p=3118}} to [[Far-right politics|far-right]]<ref name="Davies"/>}}
| publication       = ''[[Kamal Sandesh]]'' {{nowrap|([[English language|English]] and [[Hindi]])<ref>{{Cite news|author=Siddhartha Rai|date=27 January 2017|title=PM Modi goes cashless, buys lifetime subscription of BJP mouthpiece Kamal Sandesh through cheque|work=India Today|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/mail-today/story/pm-modi-bjp-kamal-sandesh-cashless-currency-revamp-957298-2017-01-27|url-status=live|access-date=17 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328080500/https://www.indiatoday.in/mail-today/story/pm-modi-bjp-kamal-sandesh-cashless-currency-revamp-957298-2017-01-27 |archive-date=28 March 2020}}</ref>}}<br />
''Kamal Barta'' {{nowrap|([[Bengali language|Bengali]])<ref>{{Cite news|last=Sengupta|first=Tamal|title=Bengal BJP revamps party mouthpiece before 2018 panchayet elections|work=The Economic Times|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/bengal-bjp-revamps-party-mouthpiece-before-2018-panchayet-elections/articleshow/54717459.cms?_oref=cook&from=mdr|url-status=live|access-date=29 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061226/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/bengal-bjp-revamps-party-mouthpiece-before-2018-panchayet-elections/articleshow/54717459.cms?_oref=cook&from=mdr|archive-date=14 April 2023}}</ref>}}
| students           = [[Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad]]<br />(unofficial)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad is not the students' wing of BJP: Shreehari Borikar|url=https://www.abvp.org/akhil-bhartiya-vidyarthi-parishad-not-students-wing-bjp-shreehari-borikar|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200228202158/https://www.abvp.org/akhil-bhartiya-vidyarthi-parishad-not-students-wing-bjp-shreehari-borikar|archive-date=28 February 2020|access-date=23 September 2019}}</ref>
| youth             = [[Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha]]<ref>{{Cite news|date=19 January 2019|title=BJP youth wing launches its campaign for party's Lok Sabha poll win|work=Economic Times|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/bjp-youth-wing-launches-its-campaign-for-partys-lok-sabha-poll-win/articleshow/67574466.cms|url-status=live|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201012115329/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/bjp-youth-wing-launches-its-campaign-for-partys-lok-sabha-poll-win/articleshow/67574466.cms|archive-date=12 October 2020}}</ref>
| women             = [[BJP Mahila Morcha]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 April 2019 |title=Quota for women in council of ministers among Mahila Morcha's suggestions for BJP poll manifesto |work=Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/quota-for-women-in-council-of-ministers-among-mahila-morchas-suggestions-for-bjp-poll-manifesto/articleshow/68738662.cms |url-status=live |access-date=17 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220607235558/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/quota-for-women-in-council-of-ministers-among-mahila-morchas-suggestions-for-bjp-poll-manifesto/articleshow/68738662.cms |archive-date=7 June 2022}}</ref>
| peasants           = BJP Kisan Morcha<ref name="KisanMorcha">{{Cite news|author=Rajkumar|title=सरकार की नीतियों को किसानों तक पहुंचाएगा बीजेपी किसान मोर्चा|work=m.patrika.com|url=https://m.patrika.com/noida-news/bjp-kisan-morcha-provide-farmers-government-policies-to-the-people-hindi-news-1541257/|url-status=live|access-date=8 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019220329/https://m.patrika.com/noida-news/bjp-kisan-morcha-provide-farmers-government-policies-to-the-people-hindi-news-1541257/ |archive-date=19 October 2020}}</ref>
| think_tank        = Public Policy Research Centre<ref>{{Cite web|title=Public Policy Research Centre|url=http://www.pprc.in/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726220734/http://www.pprc.in/|archive-date=26 July 2020 |access-date=22 July 2020}}</ref><ref name="Thinktank">—{{Cite news |date=23 May 2020|title=BJP think tank offers online course in governance; babus to impart lessons|publisher=The New Indian Express|location=New Delhi|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2020/may/23/bjp-think-tank-offers-online-course-in-governance-babus-to-impart-lessons-2146940.html |url-status=live|access-date=14 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200714094916/https://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2020/may/23/bjp-think-tank-offers-online-course-in-governance-babus-to-impart-lessons-2146940.html |archive-date=14 July 2020}}
* {{cite news|url =https://www.dailypioneer.com/2019/state-editions/bjp-think-tank-releases-modi-govt---s-100-day-report-card.html|title =BJP think tank releases Modi Govt's 100-day report card|publisher =[[The Pioneer (India)|The Pioneer]]|quote =Public Policy Research Center (PPRC), BJP's think tank, on Monday released a comprehensive report on 100 major decisions and initiatives taken by Modi Government in first 100 days.|location =New Delhi|date =10 September 2019|website =dailypioneer.com|access-date =14 July 2020|archive-date =16 July 2020|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20200716135158/https://www.dailypioneer.com/2019/state-editions/bjp-think-tank-releases-modi-govt---s-100-day-report-card.html|url-status =live}}</ref>
| website           = {{Official URL}}
| predecessor       = [[Bharatiya Jana Sangh]]<br />(1951–1977)<ref name=":4000" /><br />[[Janata Party]]<br />(1977–1980)<ref name=":4000" />
| split             = [[Janata Party]]<ref name=":4000" />
| labour            = [[Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh]]<br />(unofficial)<ref>{{Cite news|author=Pragya Singh|date=15 January 2008|title=Need to Know BJP-led BMS is biggest labour union in India|work=live mint|url=https://www.livemint.com/Politics/ohkSVkDnWYnxvZyuzggTsL/Need-to-Know--BJPled-BMS-is-biggest-labour-union-in-India.html |url-status=live|access-date=17 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103131425/https://www.livemint.com/Politics/ohkSVkDnWYnxvZyuzggTsL/Need-to-Know--BJPled-BMS-is-biggest-labour-union-in-India.html|archive-date=3 November 2018}}</ref>
| international     = [[Asia Pacific Democracy Union]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=International Democrat Union » Asia Pacific Democrat Union (APDU)|url=http://idu.org/asia-pacific-democrat-union-apdu/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170616235358/http://idu.org/asia-pacific-democrat-union-apdu/|archive-date=16 June 2017|access-date=12 June 2017|website=International Democracy Union}}</ref>
| colours           = {{colour box|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}|border=darkgray}} Saffron<ref>{{Cite web|last=Iwanek|first=Krzysztof|date=10 September 2018|title=Paint It Saffron: The Colors of Indian Political Parties|url=https://thediplomat.com/2018/09/paint-it-saffron-the-colors-of-indian-political-parties/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210623014149/https://thediplomat.com/2018/09/paint-it-saffron-the-colors-of-indian-political-parties/|archive-date=23 June 2021|access-date=5 July 2021|publisher=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]]|language=en-US}}</ref>
| symbol   = [[Lotus flower|Lotus]]<br />[[File:Lotos flower symbol.svg{{!}}class=skin-invert|100px]]
| flag     = BJP flag.svg
| leader   =
}}
{{Bharatiya Janata Party sidebar}}
{{Contains special characters|Indic}}

The '''Bharatiya Janata Party''' ({{IPA|hns|bʱaːɾətiːjə dʒənətaː paːɾʈiː|audio=Hindi-Bharatiya Janata Party.ogg|label=}}''',''' {{lit|Indian People's Party}}, '''BJP''') is a political party in [[India]] and one of the two major [[List of political parties in India|Indian political parties]] alongside the [[Indian National Congress]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=19 May 2016|title=In Numbers: The Rise of BJP and decline of Congress|work=The Times of India|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/-In-Numbers-The-Rise-of-BJP-and-decline-of-Congress/articleshow/52341190.cms|url-status=live|access-date=29 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171105170102/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/-In-Numbers-The-Rise-of-BJP-and-decline-of-Congress/articleshow/52341190.cms|archive-date=5 November 2017}}</ref> BJP emerged out from [[Syama Prasad Mukherjee]]'s [[Bharatiya Jana Sangh]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-07-06 |title=Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, the barrister who founded Bharatiya Janta Party |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/gk-current-affairs/story/remembering-shyama-prasad-mukherjee-the-founder-of-bharatiya-jana-sangh-that-later-became-bharatiya-janta-party-1563356-2019-07-06 |access-date=2024-12-24 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref> Since 2014, it has been the [[List of ruling political parties by country|ruling political party in India]] under the incumbent [[Prime Minister of India|Prime Minister]] [[Narendra Modi]].<ref name="zeenews-25May19">{{Cite news |date=25 May 2019 |title=Lok Sabha Election results 2019: EC declares results of all 542 seats, BJP wins 303 |work=Zee News |url=https://zeenews.india.com/india/live-updates/lok-sabha-election-results-2019-live-updates-bjp-narendra-modi-nda-2205806 |url-status=live |access-date=30 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190602032641/https://zeenews.india.com/india/live-updates/lok-sabha-election-results-2019-live-updates-bjp-narendra-modi-nda-2205806 |archive-date=2 June 2019}}</ref> The BJP is aligned with [[right-wing politics]] and has close ideological and organisational links to the [[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh]] (RSS), a [[Far-right politics|far-right]] [[Paramilitary organization|paramilitary organisation]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=17 March 2019|title=Men, machinery and mind of RSS behind BJP's poll power punch|work=Business Standard|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/men-machinery-and-mind-of-rss-behind-bjp-s-poll-power-punch-119031700304_1.html|url-status=live|access-date=18 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328152912/https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/men-machinery-and-mind-of-rss-behind-bjp-s-poll-power-punch-119031700304_1.html|archive-date=28 March 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/23210230231166197 | doi=10.1177/23210230231166197 | title=Hindu Nationalism and Right-wing Ecology: RSS, Modi and Motherland Post-2014 | date=2023 | last1=Sharma | first1=Mukul | journal=Studies in Indian Politics | volume=11 | pages=102–117 }}</ref> Its policies adhere to [[Hindutva]], a [[Hindu nationalism|Hindu nationalist]] ideology.{{sfn|Banerjee|2005|p=3118}}{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|p=318}} {{as of|2024|01|post=,}} it is the country's biggest political party in terms of representation in the [[Parliament of India]] as well as [[State legislature (India)|state legislatures]].

The party's origins lie in the [[Bharatiya Jana Sangh]], which was founded in 1951 by Indian politician [[Syama Prasad Mukherjee]], after he left [[Hindu Mahasabha]] to form a party as the political wing of RSS.{{sfn|Swain|2001|p=60}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Subba |first=Chhawang |date=4 April 2022 |title=Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee and the Role of Bharatiya Jana Sangh in Indian Politics |url=https://ijcrt.org/papers/IJCRT2204072.pdf |website=IJCRT |page=a570 |issn=2320-2882 |access-date=21 February 2024 |archive-date=21 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240221100951/https://ijcrt.org/papers/IJCRT2204072.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> After [[The Emergency (India)|the Emergency]] of 1975–1977, the Jana Sangh merged with several other political parties to form the [[Janata Party]]; it defeated the then-incumbent Indian National Congress in the [[1977 Indian general election|1977 general election]]. After three years in power, the Janata Party dissolved in 1980, with the members of the erstwhile Jana Sangh reconvening to form the modern-day BJP. Although initially unsuccessful—winning only two seats in the [[1984 Indian general election|1984 general election]], it grew in strength on the back of the movement around [[Ram Janmabhoomi]] in [[Uttar Pradesh]]. Following victories in several state elections and better performances in national elections, the BJP became the largest political party in the Parliament in 1996; however, it lacked a majority in the lower house of Parliament, and its government, under its then-leader [[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]], lasted for only 13 days.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=633}}

After the [[1998 Indian general election|1998 general election]], the BJP-led coalition known as the [[National Democratic Alliance]] (NDA) under prime minister Vajpayee formed a government that lasted for a year. Following fresh elections, the NDA government—again headed by Vajpayee—lasted for a full term in office; this was the first non-Congress government to do so. In the [[2004 Indian general election|2004 general election]], the NDA suffered an unexpected defeat, and for the next ten years, the BJP was the principal opposition party. Narendra Modi, then the [[List of chief ministers of Gujarat|chief minister of Gujarat]], led the party to a landslide victory in the [[2014 Indian general election|2014 general election]]. Modi has since led the NDA government as Indian prime minister, including being re-elected with a sole majority in the [[2019 Indian general election|2019 general election]] and with a coalition in the [[2024 Indian general election|2024 general election]]. {{as of|2023|12|post=,}} the alliance governs 17 Indian states and union territories.

The official ideology of the BJP is [[Integral humanism (India)|integral humanism]], first formulated by [[Deendayal Upadhyaya]] in 1965. The party advocates [[social conservatism]] and a foreign policy centred on nationalist principles. During its first period in national government, the BJP avoided its Hindu nationalist priorities, and focused on a largely [[Economic liberalisation in India|liberal economic policy]] that prioritised [[Globalization in India|globalisation]] and [[Economy of India|economic growth]] over [[Social security in India|social welfare]].{{sfn|Sen|2005|pp=251–272}} Since returning to government in 2014, the BJP government has enacted several priorities of the RSS, including criminalising the practice of [[Triple talaq in India|triple talaq]], and revoking [[Article 370 of the Constitution of India]] (which granted autonomy to [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]]), [[Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019|abrogating its statehood]].<ref name="Bhatty Sundar pp. 632–650">{{Cite journal |last1=Bhatty |first1=Kiran |last2=Sundar |first2=Nandini |date=17 September 2020 |title=Sliding from majoritarianism toward fascism: Educating India under the Modi regime |journal=International Sociology |publisher=SAGE Publications |volume=35 |issue=6 |pages=632–650 |doi=10.1177/0268580920937226 |issn=0268-5809 |s2cid=224896271}}</ref>

The party has frequently spread [[disinformation]] and has been condemned by foreign entities for spreading conspiracy theories.<ref name="q786"/><ref name="z245"/> India has experienced nationwide [[Democratic backsliding in Asia by country#India|democratic backsliding]] under the [[Premiership of Narendra Modi|BJP's rule since 2014]].<ref name="v-dem.net briefing_paper_9">{{Cite web |last1=Hindle |first1=Garry |last2=Lindberg |first2=Staffan |date=2020 |title=New Global Data on Political Parties: V-Party |url=https://www.v-dem.net/media/filer_public/b6/55/b6553f85-5c5d-45ec-be63-a48a2abe3f62/briefing_paper_9.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211024234004/https://www.v-dem.net/media/filer_public/b6/55/b6553f85-5c5d-45ec-be63-a48a2abe3f62/briefing_paper_9.pdf |archive-date=24 October 2021 |access-date=9 October 2021 |publisher=V-Dem Institute}}</ref><ref name="v-dem.net Democracy Report 2021">{{citation |first1=Nazifa |last1=Alizada |first2=Rowan |last2=Cole |first3=Lisa |last3=Gastaldi |first4=Sandra |last4=Grahn |first5=Sebastian |last5=Hellmeier |first6=Palina |last6=Kolvani |first7=Jean |last7=Lachapelle |first8=Anna |last8=Lührmann |first9=Seraphine F. |last9=Maerz |first10=Shreeya |last10=Pillai |first11=Staffan I. |last11=Lindberg |date=2021 |title=Autocratization Turns Viral. Democracy Report 2021 |work=University of Gothenburg: V-Dem Institute |url=https://www.v-dem.net/media/filer_public/74/8c/748c68ad-f224-4cd7-87f9-8794add5c60f/dr_2021_updated.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210914030243/https://www.v-dem.net/media/filer_public/74/8c/748c68ad-f224-4cd7-87f9-8794add5c60f/dr_2021_updated.pdf |archive-date=14 September 2021 |pages=20–21}}</ref><ref name="The Hindu Democratic Backsliding">{{cite news |last1=Sirnate |first1=Vasundhara |date=27 November 2021 |title=The democratic backsliding of India |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/the-democratic-backsliding-of-india/article37696763.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220830070248/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/the-democratic-backsliding-of-india/article37696763.ece |archive-date=30 August 2022 |work=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref><ref name="Ashoka Democratic Backsliding">{{cite document |title=Democratic Backsliding in the World's Largest Democracy | last=Das |first=Sabyasachi |date=3 July 2023 |publisher=[[Ashoka University]]}}</ref>

== Name, symbol, and themes ==
[[File:BJP FLAG.jpg|thumb|BJP flag being flown in one of its [[Campaign rally|campaign rallies]].]]

The name as well as the symbol of the party were selected by the founders. The name "Bharatiya Janata Party" literally translates to "Indian People's Party". The Symbol of the party is the flower [[Nelumbo nucifera|Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera)]].<ref>{{Cite web |first=Joanna |last=Banerjee-Fischer |title=What do India's political logos symbolize?|date=January 27, 2024 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/what-do-indias-political-logos-symbolize/a-68095324 |access-date=2024-03-24 |website=dw.com |language=en |archive-date=24 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240324083500/https://www.dw.com/en/what-do-indias-political-logos-symbolize/a-68095324 |url-status=live }}</ref> Lotus has a cultural significance within India as well as [[Hinduism]]. The symbol has been regarded as a symbol of peace and prosperity within Hinduism. Likewise, during the [[Indian independence movement|independence movement of India]], the symbol was used by [[Indian nationalism|Indian nationalist]] as a symbol of revolt against the [[British Raj]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Suraiya |first=Jug |title=NaMo and the lotus |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/jugglebandhi/namo-and-the-lotus/?source=app&frmapp=yes |access-date=2024-03-24 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257 |archive-date=24 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240324083458/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/jugglebandhi/namo-and-the-lotus/?source=app&frmapp=yes |url-status=live }}</ref> Lotus is also recognised as the [[National symbols of India|national flower of India]]. Thus, use of the symbol gives the party a nationalist as well as Hindutva appeal.<ref name="founders" /> Besides these, the party also heavily uses the [[Saffron (color)|Saffron]] colour in its promotional materials and campaigning. Similar to Lotus, the Saffron colour also has a major significance within Hinduism.<ref name=":0" /> The most common flag used by the party is predominantly saffron with a stripe of green in the left. Within the Saffron part of the flag, the lotus symbol is also integrated.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Iwanek |first=Krzysztof |title=Paint It Saffron: The Colors of Indian Political Parties |url=https://thediplomat.com/2018/09/paint-it-saffron-the-colors-of-indian-political-parties/ |access-date=2024-03-24 |website=thediplomat.com |language=en-US |archive-date=23 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210623014149/https://thediplomat.com/2018/09/paint-it-saffron-the-colors-of-indian-political-parties/ |url-status=live }}</ref> This particular colour scheme used in the flag assists the party to project itself as a [[Secularism in India|secular]] party. Meanwhile, this also helps the party to maintain a religious undertone for its core electorate and [[Sangh Parivar|Hindu nationalistic supporter groups]].<ref name=":1" />

== Precursors ==
=== Bharatiya Jana Sangh (1951–77) ===
{{multiple image
| align     = right
| direction = vertical
| header    = Influential figures
| width     = 220
| image1    = Shyama Prasad Mukherjee portrait in Parliament.jpg
| caption1  = [[Syama Prasad Mookerjee]], founder-president of the [[Bharatiya Jana Sangh]]
| image3    = Lkadvani.jpg
| caption3  = [[L. K. Advani|Lal Krishna Advani]], the last president of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh
}}
{{Main|Bharatiya Jana Sangh}}

The BJP's origins lie in the [[Bharatiya Jana Sangh]], popularly known as the Jana Sangh, founded by [[Syama Prasad Mukherjee]] in 1951 in response to the politics of the dominant [[Indian National Congress|National Congress party]]. It was founded in collaboration with the [[Hindu nationalism|Hindu nationalist]] volunteer organisation, the [[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh]] (RSS), and was widely regarded as the political arm of the RSS.{{sfn|Noorani|1978|p=216}} The Jana Sangh's aims included the protection of India's "Hindu" cultural identity, in addition to countering what it perceived to be the appeasement of Muslim people and the country of [[Pakistan]] by the [[Indian National Congress|Congress party]] and then-Prime Minister [[Jawaharlal Nehru]]. The RSS loaned several of its leading ''[[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh|pracharaks]]'', or full-time workers, to the Jana Sangh to get the new party off the ground. Prominent among these was [[Deendayal Upadhyaya]], who was appointed General Secretary. The Jana Sangh won only three [[Lok Sabha]] seats in the [[1951–52 Indian general election|first general elections in 1952]]. It maintained a minor presence in parliament until 1967.{{sfn|Jaffrelot|1996|pp=116–119}}{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=136}}

The Jana Sangh's first major campaign, begun in early 1953, centred on a demand for the complete integration of [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]] into India.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=250}} Mukherjee was arrested in May 1953 for violating orders from the state government restraining him from entering Kashmir. He died of a heart attack the following month, while still in jail.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=250}} [[Mauli Chandra Sharma]] was elected to succeed Mukherjee; however, he was forced out of power by the RSS activists within the party, and the leadership went instead to Upadhyaya. Upadhyay remained the General Secretary until 1967, and worked to build a committed grassroots organisation in the image of the RSS. The party minimised engagement with the public, focusing instead on building its network of propagandists. Upadhyaya also articulated the philosophy of [[Integral humanism (India)|integral humanism]], which formed the official doctrine of the party.{{sfn|Jaffrelot|1996|pp=122–126, 129–130}} Younger leaders, such as [[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]] and [[L. K. Advani|Lal Krishna Advani]] also became involved with the leadership in this period, with Vajpayee succeeding Upadhyaya as president in 1968. The major themes on the party's agenda during this period were legislating a [[Uniform Civil Code#Hindu Code Bill and addition to the Directive Principles|uniform civil code]], banning [[Cattle in religion and mythology#Hinduism|cow slaughter]] and abolishing the [[Article 370 of the Constitution of India|special status given to Jammu and Kashmir]].{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=250, 352, 413}}

After assembly elections across the country in 1967, the party entered into a coalition with several other parties, including the [[Swatantra Party]] and the socialists. It formed governments in various states across the [[Hindi Belt]], including [[Madhya Pradesh]], [[Bihar]] and [[Uttar Pradesh]]. It was the first time the Jana Sangh held political office, albeit within a coalition; this caused the shelving of the Jana Sangh's more radical agenda.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=427–428}}

=== Janata Party (1977–80) ===
{{Main|Janata Party}}
In 1975, Prime Minister [[Indira Gandhi]] imposed a [[The Emergency (India)|state of emergency]]. The Jana Sangh took part in the widespread protests, with thousands of its members being imprisoned along with other agitators across the country. In 1977, the emergency was withdrawn and general elections were held. The Jana Sangh merged with parties from across the political spectrum, including the [[Socialist Party (India)|Socialist Party]], the [[Indian National Congress (Organisation)|Congress (O)]] and the [[Bharatiya Lok Dal]] to form the Janata Party, with its main agenda being defeating Indira Gandhi.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=136}} The Janata Party won a majority in 1977 and formed a government with [[Morarji Desai]] as Prime Minister. The former Jana Sangh contributed the largest tally to the Janata Party's parliamentary contingent, with 93 seats or 31% of its strength. [[Atal Bihari Vajpayee|Vajpayee]], previously the leader of the Jana Sangh, was appointed the [[Minister of External Affairs (India)|Minister of External Affairs]].{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=538–540}}

The national leadership of the former Jana Sangh consciously renounced its identity, and attempted to integrate with the political culture of the Janata Party, based on Gandhian and Hindu traditionalist principles. Political scientist [[Christophe Jaffrelot]] wrote that this proved to be impossible assimilation.{{sfn|Jaffrelot|1996|pp=282–283}} The state and local levels of the Jana Sangh remained relatively unchanged, retaining a strong association with the RSS, which did not sit well with the moderate centre-right constituents of the Party.{{sfn|Jaffrelot|1996|pp=292–301, 312}} [[Religious violence in India|Violence between Hindus and Muslims]] increased sharply during the years that the Janata Party formed the government, with former Jana Sangha members being implicated in the riots in [[Aligarh]] and [[Jamshedpur]] in 1978–79.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} The other major constituents of the Janata Party demanded that the former  Jana Sangh members should dissociate themselves from the RSS, which they  refused to do. Eventually, a fragment of the Janata Party broke off to form the [[Janata Party (Secular)]]. The [[Premiership of Morarji Desai|Morarji Desai government]] was reduced to a minority in the Parliament, forcing Desai's resignation. Following a brief period of coalition rule, general elections were held in 1980, in which the Janata Party fared poorly, winning only 31 seats. In April 1980, shortly after the elections, the National Executive Council of the Janata Party banned its members from being 'dual members' of party and the RSS. In response, the former Jana Sangh members left to create a new political party, known as the Bharatiya Janata Party.{{sfn|Jaffrelot|1996|pp=301–312}}{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=538–540}}

== History ==
=== Formation and early days ===
{{multiple image
| align     = right
| direction = vertical
| header    = Influential figures
| width     = 220
| image2    = Atal Bihari Vajpayee (crop 2).jpg
| caption2  = [[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]], the founder-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party
}}
Although the newly formed BJP was technically distinct from the Jana Sangh, the bulk of its rank and file were identical to its predecessor, with Vajpayee being its first president.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 April 2020 |orig-date=7 April 1980 |title=Forty years ago, April 7, 1980: BJP is born |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/forty-years-ago-april-7-1980-bjp-is-born-6350456/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412160225/https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/forty-years-ago-april-7-1980-bjp-is-born-6350456/ |archive-date=12 April 2021 |access-date=12 April 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> Historian [[Ramachandra Guha]] writes that the early 1980s were marked by a wave of violence between Hindus and Muslims. The BJP initially moderated the [[Hindu nationalism|Hindu nationalist]] stance of its predecessor the Jana Sangh to gain a wider appeal, emphasising its links to the Janata Party and the ideology of [[Gandhian socialism]].{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|pp=318–336}} This was unsuccessful, as it won only two [[Lok Sabha]] seats in the [[1984 Indian general election|elections of 1984]].{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|pp=318–336}} The only two candidates of the party who won were [[A. K. Patel]] from [[Mehsana Lok Sabha constituency]] in [[Gujarat]] and [[C. Janga Reddy]] from [[Hanamkonda Lok Sabha constituency]] in [[Andhra Pradesh]].<ref name="founders" /> The [[assassination of Indira Gandhi]] a few months earlier resulted in a wave of support for the [[Indian National Congress|Congress]] which won a record tally of 414 seats, contributing to the low number for the BJP.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=579}}

=== Ram Janmabhoomi movement ===
{{Main|Ram Rath Yatra}}
{{Further|Ayodhya dispute|Demolition of the Babri Masjid}}
[[File:Advani Yatra 1990.svg|thumb|[[Ram Rath Yatra]]]]
The failure of Vajpayee's moderate strategy led to a shift in the ideology of the party toward a policy of more hardline Hindu nationalism.{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|pp=318–336}}{{sfn|Pai|1996|pp=1170–1183}} In 1984, Advani was appointed president of the party, and under him it became the political voice of the [[Ram Janmabhoomi]] movement. In the early 1980s, the [[Vishva Hindu Parishad]] (VHP) began a campaign for the construction of a [[Ram Mandir|temple]] dedicated to the Hindu deity [[Rama]] at the [[Ayodhya dispute|disputed site]] of the [[Babri Masjid|Babri Mosque]] in [[Ayodhya]]. The mosque had been constructed by the Mughal Emperor [[Babur]] in 1527. There is a dispute about whether a temple once stood there.{{sfn|Jha|2003}} The agitation was on the basis of the belief that the site is the birthplace of Rama, and that a temple had been demolished to construct the mosque.{{sfn|Flint|2005|p=165}} The BJP threw its support behind this campaign and made it a part of their election platform. It won 86 [[Lok Sabha]] seats in 1989, a tally which made its support crucial to the [[Third Front (India)#National Front (1989–1991)|National Front]] government of [[V. P. Singh]].{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=582–598}}

In September 1990, Advani began a ''[[Ratha Yatra|Rath Yatra]]'' (chariot journey) to Ayodhya in support of the Ram temple movement. According to Guha, the imagery employed by the ''yatra'' was "religious, allusive, militant, masculine, and anti-Muslim".{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=635}} Advani was placed under preventive detention on the orders of the then [[Bihar]] chief minister [[Lalu Prasad Yadav]]. A large number of ''[[Sevā|kar sevaks]]'' (religious volunteers) nonetheless converged at Ayodhya, and some attacked the mosque. Three days of fighting with the paramilitary forces ended with the deaths of several ''kar sevaks''. Hindus were urged by VHP to "take revenge" for these deaths, resulting in riots against Muslims across Uttar Pradesh.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=636}} The BJP withdrew its support from the V.P. Singh government, leading to fresh general elections. The BJP further increased its tally to 120 seats, and won a majority in the [[Uttar Pradesh]] assembly.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=633–659}}

On 6 December 1992, the RSS and its affiliates organised a rally involving more than 100,000 VHP and BJP activists at the site of the mosque.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=633–659}} The rally developed into a frenzied attack that ended with the [[Demolition of the Babri Masjid|demolition of the mosque]].{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=633–659}} Over the following weeks, waves of violence between Hindus and Muslims erupted all over the country, killing over 2,000 people.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=633–659}} The government briefly banned the VHP, and many BJP leaders, including Advani were arrested for making inflammatory speeches provoking the demolition.{{sfn|NDTV|2012}}{{sfn|Al Jazeera|2009}} Several historians have said that the demolition was the product of a conspiracy by the Sangh Parivar, and not a spontaneous act.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=633–659}} In the parliamentary elections in 1996, the BJP capitalised on the communal polarisation that followed the demolition to win 161 Lok Sabha seats, making it the largest party in parliament.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=633}} Vajpayee was sworn in as Prime Minister but was unable to attain a majority in the Lok Sabha, forcing the government to resign after 13 days.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=633}}

A [[Liberhan Commission|2009 report]], authored by Justice [[Manmohan Singh Liberhan]], found that 68 people were responsible for the demolition, mostly leaders from the BJP.{{sfn|Al Jazeera|2009}} Among those named were Vajpayee, Advani, and [[Murli Manohar Joshi]]. The report also criticised [[Kalyan Singh]], Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh during the demolition.{{sfn|Al Jazeera|2009}} He was accused of posting bureaucrats and police officers who would stay silent during the demolition.{{sfn|Al Jazeera|2009}} In 2020, the [[Supreme Court of India]] acquitted all of the accused in the demolition including Advani and Joshi.<ref>{{Cite news |date=30 September 2020 |title=All acquitted in Babri Masjid demolition case: Advani, MM Joshi hail verdict, Congress wants govt to appeal against it |language=en-IN |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ayodhya-babri-masjid-demolition-case-verdict/article32728552.ece |url-status=live |access-date=12 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412195725/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ayodhya-babri-masjid-demolition-case-verdict/article32728552.ece |archive-date=12 April 2021 |issn=0971-751X}}</ref>

Following the [[2019 Supreme Court verdict on Ayodhya dispute|2019 Supreme Court verdict]], the [[Government of India]] announced a trust to construct the Mandir. On 22 January 2024, the [[Ram Mandir]] was officially opened.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2024-01-22 |title=Ram Temple inauguration: Advent of a new era, says PM Modi |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/others/advent-of-a-new-era-says-pm-101705947809336.html |access-date=2024-01-24 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> Prime Minister [[Narendra Modi]] led its consecration, claiming it to be the start of a new era.<ref name=":0" /> The temple is expected to be fully completed by September 2025.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Afzhal Khan |first=Arshad |date=2024-11-09 |title=Ayodhya's Ram temple to take 3 more months, to be completed by September 2025 |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/allahabad/ram-temple-completion-delayed-until-september-2025-due-to-stone-carver-shortage/articleshow/115095899.cms |access-date=2025-02-10 |work=[[The Times of India]] |issn=0971-8257}}</ref>

=== Vajpayee and Advani era (1996–2004) ===
{{further|National Democratic Alliance}}

A coalition of regional parties formed the government in 1996, but this grouping was short-lived, and mid-term polls were held in 1998. The BJP contested the elections leading a coalition called the [[National Democratic Alliance]] (NDA), which contained its existing allies like the [[Samata Party]], the [[Shiromani Akali Dal]], the [[Shiv Sena (1966–2022)|Shiv Sena]] in addition to the [[All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam]] (AIADMK) and the [[Biju Janata Dal]]. Among these regional parties, the Shiv Sena was the only one that had an ideology similar to the BJP; [[Amartya Sen]], for example, called the coalition an "ad hoc" grouping.{{sfn|Sen|2005|p=254}} The NDA had a majority with outside support from the [[Telugu Desam Party]] (TDP) and Vajpayee returned as Prime Minister.{{sfn|rediff.com|1998}} However, the coalition ruptured in May 1999 when the leader of AIADMK, [[J. Jayalalithaa]], withdrew her support, and fresh elections were held again.{{sfn|Outlook|2013}}

On 13 October 1999, without the AIADMK, the NDA won 303 seats in parliament and thus an outright majority. The BJP had its highest-ever tally of 183. Vajpayee became Prime Minister for the third time; Advani became Deputy Prime Minister{{efn|in 2002}} and [[Minister of Home Affairs (India)|Home Affairs Minister]]. This NDA government lasted its full term of five years. Its policy agenda included a more aggressive stance on defence and terror and [[Neoliberalism|neo-liberal]] economic policies.{{sfn|Sen|2005|pp=251–272}} In 2001, [[Bangaru Laxman]], then the BJP president, was filmed accepting a bribe in [[Operation West End|a sting operation]].{{sfn|Kattakayam|2012}}{{sfn|India Today|2001}} He was compelled to resign and was subsequently prosecuted, eventually being sentenced to four years in prison.{{sfn|Tehelka|2001}}

==== 2002 Gujarat violence ====
{{Main|2002 Gujarat violence}}
On 27 February 2002, a [[Godhra train burning|train carrying Hindu pilgrims was burned]] outside the town of [[Godhra]], killing 59 people. The incident was seen as an attack upon Hindus, and sparked off massive anti-Muslim violence across the state of [[Gujarat]] that lasted several weeks.{{sfn|Ghassem-Fachandi|2012|pp=1–31}} The death toll estimated was as high as 2000, while 150,000 were displaced.{{sfn|Jaffrelot|2013|p=16}} Rape, mutilation, and torture were also widespread.{{sfn|Jaffrelot|2013|p=16}}{{sfn|Harris|2012}} The then-Gujarat chief minister [[Narendra Modi]] and several high-ranking government officials were accused of initiating and condoning the violence, as were police officers who allegedly directed the rioters and gave them lists of Muslim-owned properties.{{sfn|Krishnan|2012}} In April 2009, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was appointed by the Supreme Court to investigate and expedite the Gujarat riots cases. In 2012, Modi was cleared of complicity in the violence by the SIT. BJP [[Member of the Legislative Assembly (India)|MLA]] [[Maya Kodnani]], who later held a cabinet portfolio in the Modi government, was convicted of having orchestrated one of the riots and sentenced to 28 years imprisonment;{{sfn|Hindustan Times|2014}}{{sfn|NDTV.com|2012}} she was later acquitted by the [[Gujarat High Court]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 April 2018 |title=Naroda Patiya verdict: Gujarat HC acquits Maya Kodnani, commutes Babu Bajrangi's sentence |work=India Today |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/naroda-patiya-case-gujarat-hc-acquits-maya-kodnani-upholds-babu-bajrangi-s-conviction-1216228-2018-04-20 |url-status=live |access-date=6 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200229064652/https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/naroda-patiya-case-gujarat-hc-acquits-maya-kodnani-upholds-babu-bajrangi-s-conviction-1216228-2018-04-20 |archive-date=29 February 2020}}</ref> Scholars such as [[Paul Brass]], [[Martha Nussbaum]] and [[Dipankar Gupta]] have said that there was a high level of state complicity in the incidents.{{sfn|Brass|2005|pp=385–393}}{{sfn|Gupta|2011|p=252}}{{sfn|Nussbaum|2008|p=2}}

=== In opposition (2004–2014) ===
Vajpayee called for [[2004 Indian general election|early elections in 2004]], six months ahead of schedule. The NDA's campaign was based on the slogan "[[India Shining]]", which sought to depict it as responsible for a rapid economic transformation of the country.{{sfn|Ramesh|2004}} However, the NDA unexpectedly suffered a heavy defeat, winning only 186 seats in the [[Lok Sabha]], compared to the 222 of the Congress and its allies. [[Manmohan Singh]] succeeded Vajpayee as Prime Minister as the head of the [[United Progressive Alliance]]. The NDA's failure to reach out to rural Indians was provided as an explanation for its defeat, as was its divisive policy agenda.{{sfn|Ramesh|2004}}{{sfn|The Hindu|2004}}

In May 2008, the BJP won the [[2008 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election|state elections in Karnataka]]. This was the first time that the party won assembly elections in any [[South India]]n state. In the [[2009 Indian general election|2009 general elections]], its strength in the Lok Sabha was reduced to 116 seats. The election campaign would be the final for Advani as leader. The party would be led by [[Arun Jaitley]] in the Rajya Sabha and [[Sushma Swaraj]] in the Lok Sabha for the following 5 years. It lost the [[2013 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election|Karnataka assembly election]] in 2013.{{sfn|Hindustan Times|2009}}

=== Modi era (2014–present) ===
{{Main|Premiership of Narendra Modi}}
{{multiple image
| align     = right
| direction = vertical
| header    =
| width     = 220
| image1    = PM Modi 2015.jpg
| caption1  = [[Narendra Modi]], Prime Minister of India since 2014
| image2    = Amit Shah photographed during the first Union Cabinet Meeting of the 18th Lok Sabha (cropped).jpg
| caption2  = [[Amit Shah]] has been the longest (continuous) serving [[List of presidents of the Bharatiya Janata Party|National President]] of the BJP
}}

In the [[2014 Indian general election]], the BJP won 282 seats, leading the NDA to a tally of 336 seats in the 543-seat Lok Sabha.{{sfn|Mathew|2014}} Narendra Modi was sworn in as the 14th [[Prime Minister of India|prime minister of India]] on 26 May 2014.{{sfn|Deccan Chronicle|2014}}{{sfn|BBC|May|2014}} The vote share of the BJP was 31% of all votes cast, a low figure relative to the number of seats it won.{{sfn|Sridharan|2014}} This was the first instance since 1984 of a single party achieving an outright majority in the Indian Parliament{{sfn|Times of India|2014}} and the first time that it achieved a majority in the Lok Sabha on its own strength. Support was concentrated in the [[Hindi Belt|Hindi-speaking belt]] in North-central India.{{sfn|Sridharan|2014}} The magnitude of the victory was not predicted by most opinion and exit polls.{{sfn|Sridharan|2014}}

Political analysts have suggested several reasons for this victory, including the popularity of Modi, and the loss of support for the Congress due to the corruption scandals in its previous term.{{sfn|Diwakar|2014}} The BJP was also able to expand its traditionally upper-caste, upper-class support base and received significant support from middle-class and [[Dalit]] people, as well as among [[Other Backward Class]]es.{{sfn|Varshney|2014}}{{sfn|Sridharan|2014}} Its support among Muslims remained low; only 8% of Muslim voters voted for the BJP.{{sfn|Varshney|2014}}{{sfn|Sridharan|2014}} The BJP was also very successful at mobilizing its supporters and raising voter turnout among them.{{sfn|Sridharan|2014}}

After winning the election, the organisation of the BJP became more centralised with Modi at the helm.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sen |first=Suhit K. |title=BJP, which mocks Congress, has fallen prey to extreme centralisation |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/bjp-which-mocks-congress-has-fallen-prey-to-extreme-centralisation-2810695 |access-date=2024-02-14 |website=Deccan Herald |language=en |archive-date=14 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214100233/https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/bjp-which-mocks-congress-has-fallen-prey-to-extreme-centralisation-2810695 |url-status=live }}</ref> People loyal to Modi were rewarded leadership positions across various states within India.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-12-18 |title=All the PM's people: How Modi is shaping BJP organisationally, redefining 'party democracy' |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/pm-modi-bjp-narendra-modi-amit-shah-9073105/ |access-date=2024-02-14 |website=The Indian Express |language=en |archive-date=14 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214100233/https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/pm-modi-bjp-narendra-modi-amit-shah-9073105/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Amit Shah]], a close confidant of Modi, was appointed as the president of the BJP in 2014.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Amit Shah's elevation as BJP President signals a generational change and Modi's complete takeover of the party |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/cover-story/story/20140728-amit-shah-elevation-bjp-president-modi-complete-takeover-of-party-804609-2014-07-17 |access-date=2024-02-14 |website=India Today |date=17 July 2014 |language=en |archive-date=14 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214101707/https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/cover-story/story/20140728-amit-shah-elevation-bjp-president-modi-complete-takeover-of-party-804609-2014-07-17 |url-status=live }}</ref> Contextually, many veteran leaders of the party like [[L. K. Advani|Lal Krishna Advani]], [[Murli Manohar Joshi]], and [[Jaswant Singh]] amongst others were allegedly sidelined.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Chaturvedi |first=Rakesh Mohan |date=2014-03-22 |title=Narendra Modi sidelines old guard in BJP; Jaswant Singh gearing up to contest from Barmer as Independent |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/narendra-modi-sidelines-old-guard-in-bjp-jaswant-singh-gearing-up-to-contest-from-barmer-as-independent/articleshow/32441833.cms |access-date=2024-02-14 |work=The Economic Times |issn=0013-0389 |archive-date=14 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214101707/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/narendra-modi-sidelines-old-guard-in-bjp-jaswant-singh-gearing-up-to-contest-from-barmer-as-independent/articleshow/32441833.cms |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2016, the BJP joined the [[International Democracy Union|International Democratic Union]], a grouping of various [[List of right-wing political parties|centre-right and right-wing]] political parties across the globe.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pillalamarri |first=Akhilesh |title=India's Bharatiya Janata Party Joins Union of International Conservative Parties |url=https://thediplomat.com/2016/02/indias-bharatiya-janata-party-joins-union-of-international-conservative-parties/ |access-date=2024-02-14 |website=thediplomat.com |language=en-US |archive-date=25 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225011058/https://thediplomat.com/2016/02/indias-bharatiya-janata-party-joins-union-of-international-conservative-parties/ |url-status=live }}</ref> However, as of 2024, the party is no longer a member, the secretary general of the IDU, Tina Mercep, stated that they would welcome full membership of the BJP in their global network. However, [[Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha|BJP's youth organisation]] remains a member of the youth wing of the IDU.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-02-05 |title=Stephen Harper's Global Alliance of Conservative Parties Quietly Scrubbed India Off Its Website |url=https://pressprogress.ca/stephen-harpers-global-alliance-of-conservative-parties-quietly-scrubbed-india-off-its-website/ |access-date=2024-02-14 |website=PressProgress |language=en |archive-date=14 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214095121/https://pressprogress.ca/stephen-harpers-global-alliance-of-conservative-parties-quietly-scrubbed-india-off-its-website/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=BJP Conspicuous by Absence from Global Centre-Right Political Parties' Alliance |url=https://thewire.in/politics/bjp-conspicuous-by-absence-from-global-centre-right-political-parties-alliance |access-date=2024-07-10 |website=The Wire |language=en}}</ref>

During Modi's first term as prime minister, the BJP expanded its presence in several states where it had previously been a minor player, and it regained power in other states where it had been in opposition for a considerable period. [[Assam]], [[Tripura]], [[Arunachal Pradesh]], [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[Bihar]], [[Haryana]], and [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]] saw an increase in the BJP's influence, and the party entered government in several of these states.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Karmakar |first=Rahul |date=2018-12-31 |title=2018 was a landmark year for BJP, women in Northeast |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/2018-was-a-landmark-year-for-bjp-women-in-northeast/article25875880.ece |access-date=2024-02-14 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X |archive-date=14 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214103448/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/2018-was-a-landmark-year-for-bjp-women-in-northeast/article25875880.ece |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2019, the BJP won the general election with an increased majority. Soon after returning to power, on 5 August 2019, the [[Second Modi ministry|Modi administration]] revoked the special status, or [[Article 370 of the Constitution of India#Autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir: Structure and limitations|limited autonomy]], granted under [[Article 370 of the Constitution of India|Article 370]] of the [[Constitution of India|Indian Constitution]] to [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]]—a region administered by [[India]] as a state. This state consists of the larger part of Kashmir which has been the subject of a dispute among India, [[Pakistan]], and [[China]] since 1947.<ref name="britannica-jammu-kashmir">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Jammu and Kashmir, State, India |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Jammu-and-Kashmir |access-date=7 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190820091609/https://www.britannica.com/place/Jammu-and-Kashmir |archive-date=20 August 2019 |quote=Jammu and Kashmir, state of India, located in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent in the vicinity of the Karakoram and westernmost Himalayan mountain ranges. The state is part of the larger region of Kashmir, which has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since the partition of the subcontinent in 1947. |last2=Kirk |first2=William |last1=Akhtar |first1=Rais |url-access=subscription |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Jan·OsmanczykOsmańczyk2003">{{Cite book |last=Osmańczyk |first=Edmund Jan |title=Encyclopedia of the United Nations and International Agreements |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-415-93922-5 |editor-last=Mango |editor-first=Anthony |edition=3rd |volume=2: G–M |page=1189 |chapter=Jammu and Kashmir. |quote=Territory in northwestern India, subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan. It has borders with Pakistan and China. |author-link=Edmund Osmańczyk |access-date=16 June 2020 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fSIMXHMdfkkC&pg=PA1189 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414061302/https://books.google.com/books?id=fSIMXHMdfkkC&pg=PA1189 |archive-date=14 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Later in 2019, the Modi administration introduced the [[Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019]], which was passed by the [[Parliament of India]] on 11 December 2019. It amended the [[Indian nationality law|Citizenship Act, 1955]] by providing a path to Indian citizenship for illegal immigrants of [[Hindus|Hindu]], [[Sikhs|Sikh]], [[Buddhism|Buddhist]], [[Jainism|Jain]], [[Parsis|Parsi]], or [[Christians|Christian]] religion, who had [[Religious discrimination in Pakistan|fled persecution]] from [[Pakistan]], [[Bangladesh]] and [[Afghanistan]] before December 2014.<ref name="BBC explained">[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-50670393 Citizenship Amendment Bill: India's new 'anti-Muslim' law explained] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191212192621/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-50670393 |date=12 December 2019 }}, BBC News, 11 December 2019.</ref><ref name="PIBPassesBill">{{Cite web |title=Parliament passes the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019 |url=https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=195783 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191216092712/https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx%3Frelid%3D195783 |archive-date=16 December 2019 |access-date=18 December 2019 |website=pib.gov.in}}</ref> [[Muslims]] from those countries were not given such eligibility.<ref name="Washington Post" /> The act was the first time religion had been overtly used as a criterion for citizenship under [[Law of India|Indian law]].<ref name="Washington Post">{{Cite news |last=Slater |first=Joanna |date=18 December 2019 |title=Why protests are erupting over India's new citizenship law |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/why-indias-citizenship-law-is-so-contentious/2019/12/17/35d75996-2042-11ea-b034-de7dc2b5199b_story.html |url-status=live |access-date=18 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218215158/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/why-indias-citizenship-law-is-so-contentious/2019/12/17/35d75996-2042-11ea-b034-de7dc2b5199b_story.html |archive-date=18 December 2019}}</ref>{{efn|{{harvp|Sharma|2019|p=523}}: "First, citizenship status biased towards religious identity is by no means a new idea.... A careful study of the policies and laws related to citizenship, adopted since independence, substantiates the assertion that citizenship in India has always been based on an implicit belief that India is for Hindus."}}{{efn|{{harvp|Sen|2018|pp=10–11}}: "Nehru's response [to Patel's warning] made it clear that Muslim migrants from Pakistan could not join the ranks of refugees in India... Thus, despite broad public statements promising citizenship to all displaced persons from Pakistan, Hindu migrants alone counted as citizen-refugees in post-partition India."}}{{efn|{{harvp|Jayal|2019|pp=34–35}}: "While some elements of religious difference had... been covertly smuggled in earlier, this bill seeks to do so overtly."}} A report by the [[V-Dem Institute]] described India as experiencing [[democratic backsliding]] due to the [[Premiership of Narendra Modi|Modi era]].<ref name="v-dem.net briefing_paper_9" /><ref name="v-dem.net Democracy Report 2021" /> Various other studies and media sources also cite India experiencing democratic backsliding.<ref name="Ashoka Democratic Backsliding"/><ref>{{cite document |last=Bajpaee |first=Chietigj |title=What Democratic Backsliding Means for India |date=April 2024 |publisher=[[Chatham House]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Biswas |first=Soutik |date=16 March 2021 |title='Electoral autocracy': The downgrading of India's democracy |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-56393944 |website=[[BBC]]}}</ref><ref name="The Hindu Democratic Backsliding" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Bala |first=Sumathi |date=16 May 2024 |title=Modi's strongman rule raises questions about India's 'democratic decline' as he seeks a third term |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/17/modi-strongman-rule-raises-questions-on-indias-democratic-decline.html |website=[[CNBC]]}}</ref> This is considered the most notable challenge to India's democracy since the authoritarian [[The Emergency (India)|Emergency]] years of 1975–77.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 December 2016 |title=Interview with Indira Gandhi |url=https://www.indiatimes.com/culture/who-we-are/indira-gandhi-interview-tv-eye-1978-585652e6031fe-290724.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190811131347/https://www.indiatimes.com/culture/who-we-are/indira-gandhi-interview-tv-eye-1978-585652e6031fe-290724.html |archive-date=11 August 2019 |access-date=14 June 2018 |website=Interview relecast through India times |publisher=TV Eye}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=29 June 2015 |title=Recalling the Emergency years |work=The Indian Express |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/explained/recalling-the-emergency-1975-77-the-emergency-at-work/ |url-status=live |access-date=14 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200531210846/https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/recalling-the-emergency-1975-77-the-emergency-at-work/ |archive-date=31 May 2020}}</ref>

== Ideology and political positions ==
The party along the history has been widely described as a [[right-wing party]],{{sfnm|1a1=Malik|1a2=Singh|1y=1992|1pp=318–336|BBC|2012|2a1=Banerjee|2y=2005|2p=3118}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mogul |first=Rhea |date=15 April 2024 |title=Narendra Modi: India's popular but controversial leader seeking a transformative third term |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/15/india/modi-profile-india-election-intl-hnk-dst/index.html |access-date=19 May 2024 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Mehrotra |first1=Karishma |last2=Shih |first2=Gerry |date=20 April 2024 |title=As India votes, women and the young could put Modi and BJP over the top |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/04/18/india-election-modi-women-youth/ |access-date=19 May 2024 |newspaper=[[Washington Post]] |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=30 October 2023 |title=Modi's Hindu Nationalist Agenda Is Corroding India's Democracy |url=https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/will-modi-hindu-nationalism-damage-us-india-relations/ |access-date=19 May 2024 |website=World Politics Review |language=en-US}}</ref> but has recently been described as [[Far-right party|far-right]] or part of the radical right, a subset of the far-right that does not oppose democracy.<ref name="Davies">{{Cite book |last1=Davies |first1=Peter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1-iXGKN1AK4C&q=%22Bharatiya+Janata+Party%22%22far-right%22 |title=The Routledge Companion to Fascism and the Far Right |last2=Lynch |first2=Derek |date=16 August 2005 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-60952-9 |pages=103 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gill |first=Martin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZtJ2EAAAQBAJ&q=%22Bharatiya+Janata+Party%22%22far-right%22 |title=The Handbook of Security |date=2022-06-22 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-030-91735-7 |pages=158 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Leidig |first1=Eviane |last2=Mudde |first2=Cas |date=9 May 2023 |title=Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): The overlooked populist radical right party |url=https://benjamins.com/catalog/jlp.22134.lei |journal=Journal of Language and Politics |language=en |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=360–377 |doi=10.1075/jlp.22134.lei |issn=1569-2159}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ammassari |first1=Sofia |last2=Fossati |first2=Diego |last3=McDonnell |first3=Duncan |title=Supporters of India's BJP: Distinctly Populist and Nativist |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/government-and-opposition/article/abs/supporters-of-indias-bjp-distinctly-populist-and-nativist/3D2C84D6F81E1F9CCDD89654B40AB6E8 |journal=Government and Opposition |date=2023 |language=en |volume=58 |issue=4 |pages=807–823 |doi=10.1017/gov.2022.18 |issn=0017-257X}}</ref>

=== Social policies and Hindutva ===
{{Conservatism sidebar}}
{{Further|Hindutva}}
The official philosophy of the BJP is "[[Integral humanism (India)|Integral humanism]]", a philosophy first formulated by [[Deendayal Upadhyaya]] in 1965, who described it as advocating an "indigenous economic model that puts the human being at center stage."{{sfn|Hansen|1999|p=85}}{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}} It is committed to [[Hindutva]], an ideology articulated by [[Indian independence movement|Indian independence]] activist [[Vinayak Damodar Savarkar]]. According to the party, Hindutva is cultural nationalism favouring Indian culture over [[Westernization|westernisation]], thus it extends to all Indians regardless of religion.{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|pp=318–336}} Scholars and political analysts describe Hindutva as seeking to redefine India and recast it as a Hindu country to the exclusion of other religions, making the BJP a Hindu nationalist party in a general sense.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=633–659}}{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|pp=318–336}}{{sfn|Seshia|1998|pp=1036–1050}}{{sfn|Gillan|2002|pp=73–95}} The BJP moderated its stance after the NDA was formed in 1998, due to the presence of parties with a broader set of ideologies.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=633–659}}{{sfn|Sen|2005|pp=251–272}}

The BJP's Hindutva ideology has been reflected in many of its government policies. It supports the construction of the [[Ram Mandir]] temple at the [[Ayodhya dispute|disputed site]] of the [[Babri Masjid|Babri Mosque]].{{sfn|Seshia|1998|pp=1036–1050}} This issue was its major poll plank in the 1991 general elections.{{sfn|Seshia|1998|pp=1036–1050}} However, the [[Demolition of the Babri Masjid|demolition of the mosque]] during a BJP rally in 1992 resulted in a backlash against it, leading to a decline of the temple's prominence in its agenda.{{sfn|Seshia|1998|pp=1036–1050}} The education policy of the NDA government reorganised the [[National Council of Educational Research and Training]] (NCERT) and tasked it with extensively revising the textbooks used in Indian schools.{{sfn|Sen|2005|p=63}} Various scholars have stated that this revision, especially in the case of history textbooks, was a covert attempt to "[[Saffronisation|saffronise]]" Indian history.{{sfn|Sen|2005|p=63}}{{sfn|International Religious Freedom Report|2005}}{{sfn|The Hindu|2002}}{{sfn|Davies|2005}} The NDA government introduced [[Hindu astrology]] as a subject in college curricula, despite opposition from several leading scientists.{{sfn|BBC|January|2014}}

Links between the BJP and the RSS grew stronger under the Modi administration. The RSS provided organisational support to the BJP's electoral campaigns, while the Modi administration appointed a number of individuals affiliated with the RSS to prominent government positions.<ref name="Orange Evolution">{{Cite news |date=2 March 2019 |title=Narendra Modi and the struggle for India's soul |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |url=https://www.economist.com/briefing/2019/03/02/narendra-modi-and-the-struggle-for-indias-soul |url-status=live |access-date=27 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190301125100/https://www.economist.com/briefing/2019/03/02/narendra-modi-and-the-struggle-for-indias-soul |archive-date=1 March 2019}}</ref> In 2014, [[Yellapragada Sudershan Rao]], who had previously been associated with the RSS, became the chairperson of the [[Indian Council of Historical Research]] (ICHR).<ref name="Ganguly 2014">{{Cite journal |last=Ganguly |first=Sumit |date=October 2014 |title=India's Watershed Vote: The Risks Ahead |journal=[[Journal of Democracy]] |volume=25 |issue=4 |pages=56–60 |doi=10.1353/jod.2014.0077 |s2cid=154421269 }}</ref> Historians and former members of the ICHR, including those sympathetic to the BJP, questioned his credentials as a historian, and stated that the appointment was part of an agenda of cultural nationalism.<ref name="Ganguly 2014" /><ref name="saffronisation">{{Cite news |last=Joshua |first=Anita |date=16 July 2014 |title=Choice of ICHR chief reignites saffronisation debate |work=[[The Hindu]] |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/choice-of-ichr-chief-reignites-saffronisation-debate/article6214483.ece |url-status=live |access-date=20 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141202181112/http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/choice-of-ichr-chief-reignites-saffronisation-debate/article6214483.ece |archive-date=2 December 2014}}</ref><ref name="right_wing">{{Cite news |last=Mukul |first=Akshaya |date=18 July 2014 |title=Right-wingers question ICHR chief selection |work=[[The Times of India]] |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Right-wingers-question-ICHR-chief-selection/articleshow/38581467.cms |url-status=live |access-date=20 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140721002055/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Right-wingers-question-ICHR-chief-selection/articleshow/38581467.cms |archive-date=21 July 2014}}</ref> Over its first term the Modi administration appointed other RSS members to lead universities and research institutions, and recruitment of faculty members favoring the RSS increased. Scholars [[Nandini Sundar]] and Kiran Bhatty write that many of these appointees did not possess the qualifications for their positions.<ref name="Bhatty Sundar pp. 632–650" /> The Modi administration also made numerous changes in government-approved history textbooks. These changes de-emphasizing the role of [[Jawaharlal Nehru]], and glorifying that of Modi himself, while also portraying Indian society as harmonious, without conflict or inequity.<ref name="Bhatty Sundar pp. 632–650" /><ref name="Bhatty 2019">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=School education: Denials and delusions |encyclopedia=A quantum leap in the wrong direction? |last=Bhatty |first=Kiran |date=2019 |editor-last=Azad |editor-first=Rohit |isbn=978-93-5287-618-1 |oclc=1089418969 |editor-last2=Chakraborty |editor-first2=Shouvik |editor-last3=Ramani |editor-first3=Srinivasan |editor-last4=Sinha |editor-first4=Dipa}}</ref>

The BJP supports a [[uniform civil code]], which would apply a common set of personal laws to every citizen regardless of their personal religion, replacing the existing laws which vary by religious community. Historian Yogendra Malik writes that this ignores the differential procedures required to protect the cultural identity of the Muslim minority.{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|pp=318–336}}{{sfn|Seshia|1998|pp=1036–1050}} The BJP favoured, and in 2019 enacted,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Parliament approves Resolution to repeal Article 370; paves way to truly integrate J&K with Indian Union |url=https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=192505, |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310075212/https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=192505, |archive-date=10 March 2021 |access-date=31 March 2021 |website=pib.gov.in}}</ref><ref>[https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/article-370-rendered-toothless-article-35a-ceases-to-exist/articleshow/70535292.cms Article 370 rendered toothless, Article 35A ceases to exist] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130063447/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/article-370-rendered-toothless-article-35a-ceases-to-exist/articleshow/70535292.cms |date=30 November 2021 }}, The Economic Times, 5 August 2019.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Gazette of India |url=http://egazette.nic.in/WriteReadData/2019/210049.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805094806/http://egazette.nic.in/WriteReadData/2019/210049.pdf |archive-date=5 August 2019 |access-date=6 March 2020}}</ref> the abrogation of [[Article 370 of the Constitution of India]], which granted a greater degree of autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir in recognition of the unusual circumstances surrounding its [[Instrument of Accession (Jammu and Kashmir)|accession to the Indian Union]].{{sfn|Malik|Singh|1992|pp=318–336}} It simultaneously [[The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019|abrogated Jammu and Kashmir statehood]], reorganizing it into two [[union territory|union territories]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)|Jammu and Kashmir]] and [[Ladakh]].<ref name="Bhatty Sundar pp. 632–650" />

The BJP opposes [[Illegal immigration in India|illegal immigration into India]] from [[Bangladesh]].{{sfn|Gillan|2002|pp=73–95}} The party states that this migration, mostly in the states of Assam and West Bengal, threatens the security, economy and stability of the country.{{sfn|Gillan|2002|pp=73–95}} Academics have pointed out that the BJP refers to Hindu migrants from Bangladesh as refugees, and reserves the term "illegal" for Muslim migrants.{{sfn|Gillan|2002|pp=73–95}} Academic Michael Gillan perceived it as an attempt to use an emotive issue to mobilise Hindu sentiment in a region where the party has not been historically successful.{{sfn|Gillan|2002|pp=73–95}}{{sfn|Ramachandran|2003}} The party later became the party of government in Assam.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 March 2021 |title=Assam's fascinating politics & how RSS took BJP to the top in a state where it didn't exist |url=https://theprint.in/opinion/assams-fascinating-politics-how-rss-took-bjp-to-the-top-in-a-state-where-it-didnt-exist/623280/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518010553/https://theprint.in/opinion/assams-fascinating-politics-how-rss-took-bjp-to-the-top-in-a-state-where-it-didnt-exist/623280/ |archive-date=18 May 2021 |access-date=5 May 2021 |website=[[ThePrint]] |language=en-US}}</ref> The Modi administration passed a [[Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019|citizenship law]] in 2019 which provided a pathway to Indian citizenship for [[Religious persecution|persecuted religious]] minorities from [[Afghanistan]], [[Bangladesh]] and [[Pakistan]] who are [[Hindus]], [[Sikhs]], [[Buddhists]], [[Jain]]s, [[Parsis]] or [[Christians]].<ref name="BBC explained" /><ref name="PIBPassesBill" /> The law does not grant such eligibility to [[Muslims]].<ref name="CNNExcludes">{{Cite news |last1=Regan |first1=Helen |last2=Gupta |first2=Swati |last3=Khan |first3=Omar |title=India passes controversial citizenship bill that excludes Muslims |publisher=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/11/asia/india-citizenship-amendment-bill-intl-hnk/index.html |url-status=live |access-date=18 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215224043/https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/11/asia/india-citizenship-amendment-bill-intl-hnk/index.html |archive-date=15 December 2019 |quote=The government, ruled by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said the bill seeks to protect religious minorities who fled persecution in their home countries.}}</ref><ref name="NPRExcludes">{{Cite news |last=Gringlas |first=Sam |title=India Passes Controversial Citizenship Bill That Would Exclude Muslims |publisher=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2019/12/11/787220640/india-passes-controversial-citizenship-bill-that-would-exclude-muslims |url-status=live |access-date=18 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191215032601/https://www.npr.org/2019/12/11/787220640/india-passes-controversial-citizenship-bill-that-would-exclude-muslims |archive-date=15 December 2019}}</ref><ref name="Washington Post" /> This was first time religion had been overtly used as a criterion for citizenship under [[Indian law]]: it attracted global [[criticism]], and sparked widespread [[Citizenship Amendment Act protests|protests]] that were halted by the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref name="Bhatty Sundar pp. 632–650" /><ref name="Washington Post" />{{efn|{{harvp|Jayal|2019|pp=33–50}}: "While some elements of religious difference had... been covertly smuggled in earlier, this bill seeks to do so overtly."}} Counter-demonstrations against the protests developed into the [[2020 Delhi riots]], caused chiefly by Hindu mobs attacking Muslims.<ref name="guardian-3-16-20-1">{{Citation |last1=Ellis-Peterson |first1=Hannah |title=Delhi's Muslims despair of justice after police implicated in riots |date=16 March 2020 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/16/delhis-muslims-despair-justice-police-implicated-hindu-riots |work=The Guardian |access-date=17 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200317023019/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/16/delhis-muslims-despair-justice-police-implicated-hindu-riots |url-status=live |place=Delhi |archive-date=17 March 2020 |last2=Azizur Rahman |first2=Shaikh}}</ref><ref name="NYTimes-Analysis-March1">{{Citation |last1=Gettleman |first1=Jeffrey |title=In India, Modi's Policies Have Lit a Fuse |date=1 March 2020 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/01/world/asia/india-modi-hindus.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=1 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200306120958/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/01/world/asia/india-modi-hindus.html |url-status=live |archive-date=6 March 2020 |last2=Abi-Habib |first2=Maria}}</ref> Of the 53 people killed, two-thirds were Muslim.<ref name="nytimes-2020-3-12-two-thirds">{{Citation |last1=Gettleman |first1=Jeffrey |title='If We Kill You, Nothing Will Happen': How Delhi's Police Turned Against Muslims |date=12 March 2020 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/12/world/asia/india-police-muslims.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=13 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200313011029/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/12/world/asia/india-police-muslims.html |url-status=live |others=Photographs by Loke, Atul |archive-date=13 March 2020 |last2=Yasir |first2=Sameer |last3=Raj |first3=Suhasini |last4=Kumar |first4=Hari}}</ref><ref name="wapo-3-6-20-slater-1">{{Citation |last1=Slater |first1=Joanna |title=In Delhi's worst violence in decades, a man watched his brother burn |date=6 March 2020 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/in-delhis-worst-violence-in-decades-a-man-watched-his-brother-burn/2020/03/05/892dbb12-5e45-11ea-ac50-18701e14e06d_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=6 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200307070624/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/in-delhis-worst-violence-in-decades-a-man-watched-his-brother-burn/2020/03/05/892dbb12-5e45-11ea-ac50-18701e14e06d_story.html |url-status=live |archive-date=7 March 2020 |last2=Masih |first2=Niha}}</ref><ref name="wapo-3-2-20-slater-1">{{Citation |last1=Slater |first1=Joanna |title=What Delhi's worst communal violence in decades means for Modi's India |date=2 March 2020 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/what-days-of-communal-violence-mean-for-modi-and-for-india/2020/03/01/3d649c18-5a68-11ea-8efd-0f904bdd8057_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=15 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200303203132/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/what-days-of-communal-violence-mean-for-modi-and-for-india/2020/03/01/3d649c18-5a68-11ea-8efd-0f904bdd8057_story.html |url-status=live |archive-date=3 March 2020 |last2=Masih |first2=Niha}}</ref>

In 2013, the [[Supreme Court of India]] reinstated the controversial [[Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code]], which, among other things, criminalises homosexuality. There was a popular outcry, although clerics, including Muslim religious leaders, stated that they supported the verdict.{{sfn|Times of India|2013}}{{sfn|Buncombe|2014}} BJP president [[Rajnath Singh]] said that the party supported Section 377, because it believed that homosexuality was unnatural,{{sfn|Ramaseshan|2013}} though the party softened the stance after its victory in the 2014 general elections.{{sfn|Business Standard|2014}} The Modi government is opposed to [[same-sex marriage]], stating in a legal affidavit that legalizing it would cause "complete havoc with the delicate balance of personal laws in the country" and that it was "not comparable with Indian family unit concept of a husband, wife & children which necessarily presuppose a biological man as 'husband', a biological woman as 'wife' and children born out of union".<ref>{{Cite news |date=25 February 2021 |title=Indian government opposes same sex marriage, saying family is 'union of biological man and woman' |work=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/same-sex-marriage-india-b1807278.html |url-status=live |access-date=17 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117000847/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/same-sex-marriage-india-b1807278.html |archive-date=17 January 2023}}</ref>

=== Economic policies ===
{{Neoliberalism sidebar}}
The BJP's economic policy has changed considerably since its founding. There is a significant range of economic ideologies within the party. In the 1980s, like the [[Bharatiya Jana Sangh|Jana Sangh]], it reflected the thinking of the RSS and its affiliates. It supported ''[[swadeshi]]'' (the promotion of indigenous industries and products) and a [[protectionist]] export policy. However, it supported internal [[economic liberalisation]], and opposed the state-driven industrialisation favoured by the Congress.{{sfn|Shulman|2000|pp=365–390}} During the 1996 elections, and later when it was in government, the BJP shifted its stance away from protectionism and towards [[globalisation]]. The tenure of the NDA saw an unprecedented influx of foreign companies in India.{{sfn|Shulman|2000|pp=365–390}} This was criticised, including by the BJP's affiliates, the RSS and the Swadeshi Jagran Manch:{{sfn|Shulman|2000|pp=365–390}} the RSS stated that the BJP was not being true to its ''swadeshi'' ideology.{{sfn|Shulman|2000|pp=365–390}}

The two NDA governments in the period 1998–2004 introduced significant deregulation and privatisation of government-owned enterprises. It also introduced tariff-reducing measures. These reforms built off of the initial economic liberalisation introduced by the P. V. Narasimha Rao-led Congress government in the early 1990s.{{sfn|Tiwari|2012}} India's GDP growth increased substantially during the tenure of the NDA. The 2004 campaign slogan [[India Shining]] was based on the party's belief that the free market would bring prosperity to all sectors of society.{{sfn|Guha|2007|pp=710–720}} After its unexpected defeat, commentators said that it was punished for neglecting the needs of the poor and focusing too much on its corporate allies.{{sfn|Ramesh|2004}}{{sfn|The Hindu|2004}}{{sfn|Sen|2005|p=70}}

This shift in the economic policies of the BJP was also visible in state governments, especially in Gujarat, where the BJP held power for 16 years.{{sfn|Sheela Bhatt|2014}} Modi's government, in power from 2002 to 2014, followed a strongly neo-liberal agenda, presented as a drive towards development.{{sfn|Bobbio|2012|pp=652–668}}{{sfn|Jaffrelot|2013|pp=79–95}} Its policies have included extensive privatisation of infrastructure and services, as well as a significant rollback of labour and environmental regulations. While this was praised by the business community, commentators criticised it as catering to the BJP's upper-class constituency instead of the poor.{{sfn|Bobbio|2012|pp=652–668}}

The economic policies of Modi's government focused on privatisation and liberalisation of the economy, based on a [[neoliberal]] framework.<ref name="Ruparelia">{{Cite journal |last=Ruparelia |first=Sanjay |date=12 January 2016 |title='Minimum Government, Maximum Governance': The Restructuring of Power in Modi's India |journal=Journal of South Asian Studies |volume=38 |issue=4 |pages=755–775 |doi=10.1080/00856401.2015.1089974 |issn=0085-6401 |s2cid=155182560}}</ref><ref name="Shah & Lerche">{{Cite journal |last1=Shah |first1=Alpa |last2=Lerche |first2=Jens |date=10 October 2015 |title=India's Democracy: Illusion of Inclusion |url=https://www.epw.in/journal/2015/41/book-reviews/indias-democracy-illusion-inclusion.html |url-status=live |journal=[[Economic & Political Weekly]] |volume=50 |issue=41 |pages=33–36 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230328113150/https://www.epw.in/journal/2015/41/book-reviews/indias-democracy-illusion-inclusion.html |archive-date=28 March 2023 |access-date=18 March 2023}}</ref> Modi liberalised India's [[foreign direct investment]] policies, allowing more foreign investment in several industries, including in defence and the railways.<ref name="Ruparelia" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=7 August 2014 |title=Cabinet approves raising FDI cap in defence to 49 percent, opens up railways |work=[[The Times of India]] |url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-08-07/news/52555932_1_defence-sector-cent-fdi-railways-sector |url-status=dead |access-date=27 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150807044440/http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-08-07/news/52555932_1_defence-sector-cent-fdi-railways-sector |archive-date=7 August 2015 |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Zhong |first=Raymond |date=20 November 2014 |title=Modi Presses Reform for India—But Is it Enough? |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/modi-presses-reform-for-india-but-is-it-enough-1416466742 |url-status=live |access-date=29 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160329123224/http://www.wsj.com/articles/modi-presses-reform-for-india-but-is-it-enough-1416466742 |archive-date=29 March 2016 |df=dmy-all}}</ref> Other proposed reforms included making it harder for workers to form unions and easier for employers to hire and fire them;<ref name="Shah & Lerche" /> some of these proposals were dropped after protests.<ref name="ET March 2018">{{Cite news |date=14 March 2018 |title=Modi renews labour reforms push as jobs regain focus before polls |work=[[The Economic Times]] |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/modi-renews-labour-reforms-push-as-jobs-regain-focus-before-polls/articleshow/63297358.cms |url-status=live |access-date=6 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209124121/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/modi-renews-labour-reforms-push-as-jobs-regain-focus-before-polls/articleshow/63297358.cms |archive-date=9 February 2019}}</ref> The reforms drew strong opposition from unions: on 2 September 2015, eleven of the country's largest unions went on strike, including one affiliated with the BJP.<ref name="Shah & Lerche" /> The [[Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh]], a constituent of the Sangh Parivar, stated that the underlying motivation of labour reforms favoured corporations over labourers.<ref name="Ruparelia" /> Modi has been described as taking a more economically [[populist]] approach on healthcare and agricultural policy.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Modi rolls out his populist plans with a second term in mind |work=[[The Nikkei]] |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Modi-rolls-out-his-populist-plans-with-a-second-term-in-mind |url-status=live |access-date=20 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180820174144/https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Modi-rolls-out-his-populist-plans-with-a-second-term-in-mind |archive-date=20 August 2018}}</ref> Modi's government has also been described as taking a more [[protectionist]] turn on international trade during his second term, withdrawing from the [[Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership]] talks<ref>{{Cite news |date=15 November 2020 |title=Why India opted out of world's biggest today |work=[[Times of India]] |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/why-india-opted-out-of-worlds-biggest-trade-deal-signed-today/articleshow/79230628.cms |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114124257/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/why-india-opted-out-of-worlds-biggest-trade-deal-signed-today/articleshow/79230628.cms |archive-date=14 January 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=3 December 2020 |title=Out of RCEP, India seeks an export passage to Africa |work=[[The Nikkei|Nikkei]] |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Out-of-RCEP-India-seeks-an-export-passage-to-Africa |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210103080258/https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Out-of-RCEP-India-seeks-an-export-passage-to-Africa |archive-date=3 January 2021 |quote=India has made a calculated move to shift its focus from multilateral trade to protectionism.}}</ref> and introducing the 2020 [[Atmanirbhar Bharat]] economic plan, which emphasises national self-sufficiency.<ref>{{Cite news |date=23 November 2020 |title=Modi forced to tread different path in post-Trump era |work=[[Financial Times]] |url=https://www.ft.com/content/b98a768d-1e2b-4ec0-94ed-75b24daee961 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/b98a768d-1e2b-4ec0-94ed-75b24daee961 |archive-date=10 December 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=19 February 2020 |title=India Tariffs Show Modi's Protectionist U-Turn |work=[[Bloomberg L.P.|Bloomberg]] |url=https://www.bloombergquint.com/global-economics/trade-war-latest-modi-makes-a-u-turn-k6t9lj64 |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303220412/https://www.bloombergquint.com/global-economics/trade-war-latest-modi-makes-a-u-turn-k6t9lj64 |archive-date=3 March 2021}}</ref>

=== Defence and counterterrorism ===
Compared to Congress, the BJP takes a more aggressive and nationalistic position on defence policy and terrorism.{{sfn|Ganguly|1999|pp=148–177}}{{sfn|Krishnan|2004|pp=1–37}} The Vajpayee-led NDA government carried out nuclear weapons tests and enacted the [[Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002|Prevention of Terrorism Act]], which later came under heavy criticism.{{sfn|Ganguly|1999|pp=148–177}}{{sfn|Krishnan|2004|pp=1–37}} It also deployed troops to evict infiltrators from Kargil, and supported the United States [[War on Terror]].{{sfn|Kux|2002|pp=93–106}}

Although previous Congress governments developed the capability for a nuclear weapons test, the Vajpayee government broke with India's historical strategy of avoiding it and authorised [[Pokhran-II]], a series of five nuclear tests in 1998.{{sfn|Ganguly|1999|pp=148–177}} The tests came soon after Pakistan tested a medium-range ballistic missile. They were seen as an attempt to display India's military prowess to the world, and a reflection of anti-Pakistan sentiment within the BJP.{{sfn|Ganguly|1999|pp=148–177}}

The Vajpayee government ordered the Indian armed forces to expel the Pakistani soldiers occupying [[Kashmir]] territory, later known as the [[Kargil War]].{{sfn|Qadir|2002|pp=1–10}}{{sfn|Abbas|2004|p=173}} Although the government was later criticised for the intelligence failures that did not detect Pakistani presence, it was successful in ousting them from the previously Indian-controlled territory.{{sfn|Qadir|2002|pp=1–10}}{{sfn|Abbas|2004|p=173}}

After the [[2001 Indian Parliament attack|terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament]] in December 2001, the NDA government passed the [[Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002|Prevention of Terrorism Act]].{{sfn|Krishnan|2004|pp=1–37}} The aim of the act was to improve the government's ability to deal with terrorism.{{sfn|Krishnan|2004|pp=1–37}} It initially failed to pass in the [[Rajya Sabha]]; therefore, the NDA took the extraordinary step of convening a [[joint session]] of the Parliament, where the numerical superior [[Lok Sabha]] allowed the bill to pass.{{sfn|Krishnan|2004|pp=1–37}} The act was subsequently used to prosecute hundreds of people accused of terrorism.{{sfn|Krishnan|2004|pp=1–37}} However, it was criticised by opposition parties and scholars for being an infringement upon [[civil liberties]], and the [[National Human Rights Commission of India]] stated that it had been used to target Muslims.{{sfn|Krishnan|2004|pp=1–37}} It was later repealed by the Congress-led UPA government in 2004.{{sfn|Times of India|2002}}

The Modi government has conducted several strikes on territory controlled by neighbouring countries on counterterrorism grounds. This included a [[2015 Indian counter-insurgency operation in Myanmar]] against the [[National Socialist Council of Nagaland]], the [[2016 Indian Line of Control strike]] in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and the [[2019 Balakot airstrike]] in Pakistan.<ref>{{Cite news |date=11 July 2018 |title=Ex-Army chief Dalbir Singh praises PM Narendra Modi for surgical strikes in Pakistan, Myanmar |work=[[The Economic Times]] |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/ex-army-chief-dalbir-singh-praises-pm-narendra-modi-for-surgical-strikes-in-pakistan-myanmar/articleshow/60885703.cms |url-status=live |access-date=25 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118052537/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/ex-army-chief-dalbir-singh-praises-pm-narendra-modi-for-surgical-strikes-in-pakistan-myanmar/articleshow/60885703.cms |archive-date=18 January 2021}}</ref> It also militarily intervened in defence of [[Bhutan]] during the [[2017 Doklam standoff]] with China.<ref>{{Cite news |date=14 October 2017 |title=Doklam Standoff: Who's Involved & Why's India Bothered? |work=[[The Quint]] |url=https://www.thequint.com/news/india/doklam-standoff-explained |url-status=live |access-date=25 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027203809/https://www.thequint.com/news/india/doklam-standoff-explained |archive-date=27 October 2020}}</ref>

The Modi government considers national security to be one of their key focuses and has implemented many long-standing defence reforms.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mukherjee |first=Anit |date=5 May 2021 |title=The Great Churning: Modi's Transformation of the Indian Military |url=https://warontherocks.com/2021/05/the-great-churning-modis-transformation-of-the-indian-military/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221106065208/https://warontherocks.com/2021/05/the-great-churning-modis-transformation-of-the-indian-military/ |archive-date=6 November 2022 |access-date=6 November 2022 |website=War on the Rocks |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=8 April 2019 |title=BJP Manifesto 2019: National security, welfare key themes for Modi's re-election bid – 5 takeaways |language=en |work=[[The Financial Express (India)]] |url=https://www.financialexpress.com/elections/bjp-manifesto-2019-national-security-welfare-key-themes-for-modis-re-election-bid-5-takeaways/1541500/ |url-status=live |access-date=6 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221106065206/https://www.financialexpress.com/elections/bjp-manifesto-2019-national-security-welfare-key-themes-for-modis-re-election-bid-5-takeaways/1541500/ |archive-date=6 November 2022}}</ref> In August 2019, the Modi government established the post of the [[Chief of Defence Staff (India)|Chief of Defence Staff (CDS)]] to ensure better coordination between all three services, a reform that was widely requested after the 1999 Kargil War.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 August 2019 |title=Explained: What is Chief of Defence Staff that PM Modi announced in I-Day speech |language=en |work=[[India Today]] |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/explained-what-is-chief-of-defence-staff-cds-pm-narendra-modi-independence-day-speech-1581018-2019-08-15 |url-status=live |access-date=6 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190927070751/https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/explained-what-is-chief-of-defence-staff-cds-pm-narendra-modi-independence-day-speech-1581018-2019-08-15 |archive-date=27 September 2019}}</ref> The [[Department of Military Affairs]] was also established and put under the CDS.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Singh |first=Rahul |date=24 December 2019 |title=Govt sets up Dept of Military Affairs to be headed by Chief of Defence Staff |language=en |work=[[Hindustan Times]] |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/govt-sets-up-dept-of-military-affairs-to-be-headed-by-chief-of-defence-staff/story-eIC4HPIpbexJgGtpEfMaLI.html |url-status=live |access-date=6 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003170252/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/govt-sets-up-dept-of-military-affairs-to-be-headed-by-chief-of-defence-staff/story-eIC4HPIpbexJgGtpEfMaLI.html |archive-date=3 October 2022}}</ref>

=== Foreign policy ===
The historical stance of the BJP towards [[foreign policy]], like the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, was based on an aggressive [[Hindu nationalism]] combined with economic protectionism.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}} The Bharatiya Jana Sangh was founded with the explicit aim of reversing the [[partition of India]]; as a result, its official position was that the existence of Pakistan was illegitimate.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}} This antagonism toward Pakistan remains a significant influence on the BJP's ideology.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}}{{sfn|Harris|2005|pp=7–27}} During the Cold War, the party and its affiliates strongly opposed India's long standing policy of [[Non-Aligned Movement|non-alignment]], and instead advocated closeness to the United States.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}} In the post-Cold War era, the party has largely embraced the Indian foreign policy consensus of improving relations with the United States,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Inbar |first=Efraim |title=US Foreign Policy and Global Standing in the 21st Century |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2016 |page=155}}</ref> while stressing a desire for a more [[Polarity (international relations)|multipolar]] world order.<ref>{{Cite news |date=19 September 2020 |title=Multipolar world should include multipolar Asia: Jaishankar |work=[[The Hindu]] |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/multipolar-world-should-include-multipolar-asia-jaishankar/article32644407.ece |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124010145/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/multipolar-world-should-include-multipolar-asia-jaishankar/article32644407.ece |archive-date=24 November 2020}}</ref> Despite this, it has accused the [[U.S. State Department]] and "[[Deep state in the United States|deep state]]" elements in the United States of attempting to destabilise India.<ref>{{cite news|work=Reuters|date=6 December 2024|title=Modi's BJP says US State Department targeting India|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/india/modis-bjp-says-us-state-department-targeting-india-2024-12-06/}}</ref>

The Vajpayee government's foreign policy in many ways represented a radical shift from BJP orthodoxy while maintaining some aspects of it.{{sfn|Shulman|2000|pp=365–390}}{{sfn|Harris|2005|pp=7–27}} Its policy also represented a significant change from the [[Jawaharlal Nehru#Foreign policy|Nehruvian idealism]] of previous governments, opting instead for realism.{{sfn|Lall|2006}} His party criticised him for adopting a much more moderate stance with Pakistan. In 1998, he made a landmark visit to Pakistan, and inaugurated the [[Delhi–Lahore Bus]] service.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}} Vajpayee signed the [[Lahore Declaration]], which was an attempt to improve Indo-Pakistani relations that deteriorated after the 1998 nuclear tests.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}} However, the presence of Pakistani soldiers and militants in the disputed Kashmir territory was discovered a few months later, causing the [[Kargil War|1999 Kargil War]]. The war ended a couple of months later, with the expulsion of the infiltrators two months later, without any shift in the [[Line of Control]] that marked the ''de facto'' border between the two countries.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}} Despite the war, Vajpayee continued to display a willingness to engage Pakistan in dialogue. This was not well received among the BJP cadre, who criticised the government for being "weak".{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}} This faction of the BJP asserted itself at the post-Kargil [[Agra summit]], preventing any significant deal from being reached.{{sfn|Chaulia|2002|pp=215–234}}

The Vajpayee government strongly opposed the 1999 [[NATO bombing of Yugoslavia]], with Vajpayee describing it as a "dance of destruction".<ref>Pradhan, Sharat. [https://www.rediff.com/news/1999/mar/29nato.htm Vajpayee condemns NATO war in Kosovo]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081118134331/https://www.rediff.com/news/1999/mar/29nato.htm |date=18 November 2008}}. ''[[Rediff]]'', 29 March 1999.</ref><ref>Faiola, Anthony. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/balkans/stories/anger051899.htm Yugoslavia Air Campaign Ignites Anti-U.S. Sentiment]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315020414/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/balkans/stories/anger051899.htm|date=15 March 2018}}. ''[[The Washington Post]]'', 18 May 1999.</ref> The Vajpayee administration later offered political support to the U.S. [[War on Terror]], in the hope of better addressing India's issues with terrorism and insurgency in Kashmir. This led to closer defence ties with the US, including negotiations for the sale of weapons.{{sfn|Kux|2002|pp=93–106}} However, the BJP strongly condemned the [[2003 invasion of Iraq]], stating that it "deplores the unjustified military action resorted to by the United States, Britain and their allies against Iraq".<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 April 2003 |title=BJP Passes Resolution 'Deploring' Iraq War |work=Arab News |url=https://www.arabnews.com/node/230278 |url-status=live |access-date=1 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901100757/https://www.arabnews.com/node/230278 |archive-date=1 September 2022}}</ref> In 2005, the BJP [[Opposition to the India–United States Civil Nuclear Agreement in India#Bharatiya Janata Party|opposed]] the [[India–United States Civil Nuclear Agreement]], which placed restrictions on India's nuclear program.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/story/213652.html |title=IndianExpress.com :: Renegotiate 123: Advani gives in to pressure from party |accessdate=2008-07-11 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215045643/http://www.indianexpress.com/story/213652.html |archivedate=December 15, 2007 }}</ref> The BJP also opposed the [[2011 military intervention in Libya]] and urged the [[Lok Sabha]] to pass a unanimous resolution condemning it.<ref>{{Cite news |date=23 March 2011 |title=Condemn air strikes on Libya: MPs |work=[[The Hindu]] |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national//article60530375.ece |url-status=live |access-date=1 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901101324/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national//article60530375.ece |archive-date=1 September 2022}}</ref>

The Modi government initially took a pragmatic stance towards Pakistan, attempting to improve relations with [[Nawaz Sharif]]'s government, culminating in Modi visiting Pakistan in 2015.<ref>{{Cite news |date=25 December 2015 |title=India PM Modi in surprise Pakistan visit |work=[[BBC]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-35178594 |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210211014845/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-35178594 |archive-date=11 February 2021}}</ref> Relations subsequently deteriorated, particularly after Sharif was ousted in 2017.<ref>{{Cite news |date=18 December 2020 |title=PM Modi offers condolences to Sharif on his mother's death |work=[[Times of India]] |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/pm-modi-offers-condolences-to-sharif-on-his-mothers-death/articleshow/79790702.cms |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222092117/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/pm-modi-offers-condolences-to-sharif-on-his-mothers-death/articleshow/79790702.cms |archive-date=22 December 2020}}</ref> The Modi government has since been described as taking a "hardline" approach on Pakistan, and the BJP has accused the opposition Congress of collaborating with Pakistan through its criticism of government policy.<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 February 2019 |title=The Modi Years: Where does India's Pakistan policy stand? |work=Scroll.in |url=https://scroll.in/article/914369/the-modi-years-where-does-indias-pakistan-policy-stand |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310074955/https://scroll.in/article/914369/the-modi-years-where-does-indias-pakistan-policy-stand |archive-date=10 March 2021}}</ref> In 2015, the Modi government was accused by the Nepalese government of imposing an undeclared [[2015 Nepal blockade|blockade on Nepal]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=15 November 2015 |title=Nepal PM Wants India to Lift Undeclared Blockade |work=[[NDTV]] |url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/nepal-pm-wants-india-to-lift-undeclared-blockade-1243695 |url-status=live |access-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108132725/https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/nepal-pm-wants-india-to-lift-undeclared-blockade-1243695 |archive-date=8 November 2020}}</ref> The Modi government expressed concern following the [[2021 Myanmar coup d'état]], but maintained cordial relations with the military government, abstaining from a [[United Nations Security Council]] resolution regarding the situation there.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Martin |first=Michael |date=22 November 2021 |title=Prime Minister Modi and Myanmar's Military Junta |url=https://www.csis.org/analysis/prime-minister-modi-and-myanmars-military-junta |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130192530/https://www.csis.org/analysis/prime-minister-modi-and-myanmars-military-junta |archive-date=30 January 2023 |access-date=30 January 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Haidar |first=Suhasini |date=22 December 2022 |title=India abstains from UNSC vote on Myanmar, calls for constructive diplomacy |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/india-china-russia-abstain-on-unsc-resolution-on-myanmar/article66291314.ece |url-status=live |access-date=30 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130192526/https://www.thehindu.com/news/india-china-russia-abstain-on-unsc-resolution-on-myanmar/article66291314.ece |archive-date=30 January 2023}}</ref> The Modi government remained neutral on the [[Russo-Ukrainian War]],<ref>{{Cite news |date=10 March 2022 |title=Why India maintains neutral stand in Russia-Ukraine war? PM Modi answers |work=Livemint |url=https://www.livemint.com/news/india/why-india-maintains-neutral-stand-in-russia-ukraine-war-pm-modi-answers-11646930954628.html |url-status=live |access-date=13 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230113134704/https://www.livemint.com/news/india/why-india-maintains-neutral-stand-in-russia-ukraine-war-pm-modi-answers-11646930954628.html |archive-date=13 January 2023}}</ref> abstaining from [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 2623]], which condemned the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine (2022–present)|ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 February 2022 |title=Opposition on India's Russia resolution abstention: 'Same side as China' |work=[[Hindustan Times]] |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/opposition-as-india-skips-russia-resolution-vote-stood-on-same-side-as-china-101645862429168.html |url-status=live |access-date=1 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901102900/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/opposition-as-india-skips-russia-resolution-vote-stood-on-same-side-as-china-101645862429168.html |archive-date=1 September 2022}}</ref> The leadership of the Indian National Congress backed the government's stance.<ref>{{Cite news |date=3 March 2022 |title=Ukraine crisis: Congress backs decision to abstain from voting on UN resolutions |work=[[The Times of India]] |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/ukraine-crisis-congress-backs-decision-to-abstain-from-voting-on-un-resolutions/articleshow/89967628.cms |url-status=live |access-date=1 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901102900/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/ukraine-crisis-congress-backs-decision-to-abstain-from-voting-on-un-resolutions/articleshow/89967628.cms |archive-date=1 September 2022}}</ref>

===Disinformation and conspiracy theories===

The BJP has frequently spread disinformation and relied on Muslim demonisation.<ref name="x215">{{cite web | last=Bhattacharyya | first=Indradeep | title=BJP's 2024 poll campaign is riding on disinformation and Muslim vilification | website=Alt News | date=2024-05-01 | url=https://www.altnews.in/bjps-2024-poll-campaign-is-riding-on-disinformation-and-muslim-vilification/ | access-date=2024-12-10}}</ref> The use of fake news has been a part of the party's strategy. In September 2018, [[Amit Shah]] said at a party meeting in Rajasthan that the BJP IT cell had influenced the media during the 2017 Uttar Pradesh elections and added that, "We should be capable of delivering any message to the public, whether sweet or sour, true or fake."<ref name="q786">{{cite book | last1=Jaffrelot | first1=Christophe | last2=Schoch | first2=C. | title=Modi's India: Hindu Nationalism and the Rise of Ethnic Democracy | publisher=Princeton University Press | year=2023 | isbn=978-0-691-24790-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-fuUEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA329 | access-date=2024-12-10 | page=329}}</ref>

In April 2024, the US State Department criticised the BJP for promoting [[anti-semitic]] conspiracy theories involving [[George Soros]].<ref name="s195">{{cite web | title=US State Dept Accuses India of Anti-Semitism for Pushing Conspiracies Against George Soros | website=The Wire | date=2023-10-06 | url=https://thewire.in/government/us-state-dept-accuses-india-of-anti-semitism-for-pushing-conspiracies-against-george-soros | access-date=2024-12-10}}</ref>

In December 2024, the French newspaper [[Mediapart]] condemned the BJP for falsifying its reports and added that, "There are no facts available supporting the conspiracy theory promoted by BJP".<ref name="z245">{{cite web | author=The Hindu Bureau | title=BJP spreading 'fake news', says French media house Mediapart | website=The Hindu | date=2024-12-09 | url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/bjp-spreading-fake-news-says-french-media-house/article68966777.ece | access-date=2024-12-10}}</ref>

== Organisation and structure ==
[[File:Structure of BJP 2020 March.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.3|A diagram of the [[Organisation of the Bharatiya Janata Party|structure of the Bharatiya Janata Party]]]]

{{Main|Organisation of the Bharatiya Janata Party}}
{{Further|List of presidents of the Bharatiya Janata Party|National Executive of the Bharatiya Janata Party}}

The organisation of the BJP is strictly hierarchical, with the [[List of Presidents of the Bharatiya Janata Party|president]] being the highest authority in the party.{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}} Until 2012, the BJP constitution mandated that any qualified member could be national or state president for a single three-year term.{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}} This was amended to a maximum of two consecutive terms.{{sfn|Times of India|2012}}

Below the president is the [[National Executive of the Bharatiya Janata Party|National Executive]], which contains a variable number of senior leaders from across the country. It is the higher decision-making body of the party. Its members are several vice-presidents, general-secretaries, treasurers and secretaries, who work directly with the president.{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}} An identical structure, with an executive committee led by a president, exists at the state, regional, district and local level.{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}

The BJP is a cadre-based party. It has close connections with other organisations with similar ideologies, such as the RSS, ABVP, BYSS, VHP and other [[Sangh Parivar]]-related organisations. The cadres of these groups often supplement the BJP's. Its lower members are largely derived from the RSS and its affiliates, loosely known as the [[Sangh Parivar]]:{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}
* The [[Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad]] (''All India Students' Union''), the students' wing of the RSS{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}
* The [[Bharatiya Kisan Sangh]] (''Indian Farmer's Union''), the farmers' division{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}
* The [[Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh]] (''Indian Labourers Union''), the labour union associated with the RSS{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}

The party has subsidiary organisations of its own, such as:
* The BJP Mahila Morcha (''BJP Women's Front''), its women's division{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}
* The [[Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha]] (''Indian People's Youth Front''), its youth wing{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}
* The BJP Minority Morcha (''BJP Minority Front''), its minority division{{sfn|Swain|2001|pp=71–104}}

In terms of members, BJP claims to have over 170 million members<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-10-16 |title=BJP v CCP: The rise of the world's biggest political party |language=en-UK |work=Sydney Morning Herald |url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/bjp-v-ccp-the-rise-of-the-world-s-biggest-political-party-20220916-p5bise.html |url-status=live |access-date=2023-07-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230701075444/https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/bjp-v-ccp-the-rise-of-the-world-s-biggest-political-party-20220916-p5bise.html |archive-date=1 July 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-04-16 |title=How BJP became world's largest political party in 4 decades |language=en-IN |work=[[The Times of India]] |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/in-10-charts-how-bjp-became-a-political-juggernaut-in-4-decades/articleshow/90680606.cms |url-status=live |access-date=2023-07-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230628205517/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/in-10-charts-how-bjp-became-a-political-juggernaut-in-4-decades/articleshow/90680606.cms |archive-date=28 June 2023}}</ref> as of October 2022, and it's considered to be among the world's [[List of largest political parties|largest political parties]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-06-23 |title=Narendra Modi's Message to America |language=en-US |work=National Review |url=https://www.nationalreview.com/the-morning-jolt/narendra-modis-message-to-america/ |url-status=live |access-date=2023-07-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230701084716/https://www.nationalreview.com/the-morning-jolt/narendra-modis-message-to-america/ |archive-date=1 July 2023 |quote="His Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, or "Indian People's Party") is on the right of the Indian political spectrum. It is the largest political party in the world, with more members than the Chinese Communist Party, and supports Hindu nationalist ideology and economic development."}}</ref> In September 2024, PM Modi initiated the BJP membership drive,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/bjp-membership-drive-from-september-1-usually-precedes-polls-to-elect-party-chief/article68537254.ece|title=BJP membership drive from September 1, usually precedes polls to elect party chief|date=2024-08-17|website=The Hindu|access-date=2024-09-24}}</ref> this campaign has been controversial for deceptive and coercive membership enrollment by BJP workers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.deccanherald.com/india/madhya-pradesh/madhya-pradesh-man-claims-he-was-thrashed-for-refusing-to-become-bjp-member-4-booked-3194800|title=Madhya Pradesh: Man claims he was thrashed for refusing to become BJP member; 4 booked|website=Deccan Herald}}</ref> In Gujarat, minor school children have been enrolled as BJP members<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/gujarat/bjp-membership-drive-hits-controversies-in-gujarat/article68657001.ece|first=Mahesh|last=Langa|date=2024-09-19|access-date=2024-09-24|website=The Hindu|title=BJP membership drive hits controversies in Gujarat}}</ref>

== General election results ==
{{See also|Electoral history of the Bharatiya Janata Party}}

The Bharatiya Janata Party was officially founded in 1980, and the first general election it contested was in 1984, in which it won only two [[Lok Sabha]] seats. Following the election in 1996, the BJP became the largest party in the Lok Sabha for the first time, but the government it formed was short-lived.{{sfn|Guha|2007|p=633}} In the elections of 1998 and 1999, it remained the largest party, and headed the ruling coalition on both occasions.{{sfn|Sen|2005|pp=251–272}} In the 2014 general election, it won an outright majority in parliament. From 1991 onwards, a BJP member has led the [[Leader of the Opposition (India)|Opposition]] whenever the party was not in power.{{sfn|National Informatics Centre|2014}}{{efn|For the electoral results of the BJP's predecessors, see the JP and BJS articles.}}
{{Clear|left}}

{| class="wikitable sortable"
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Year
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Legislature
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"|Party leader
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Seats contested
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Seats won
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Change in seats
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Percentage<br />of votes
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Vote swing
! style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Outcome
! class="unsortable" style="background:#f93; color:white;"| Ref.
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[1984 Indian general election|1984]]
| [[8th Lok Sabha]]
| [[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]]
| 229
|{{Composition bar|2|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{increase}} 2
| 7.74%
| ''New''
| {{no2|Opposition}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|1984}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[1989 Indian general election|1989]]
| [[9th Lok Sabha]]
|rowspan=2| [[Lal Krishna Advani]]
| 225
|{{Composition bar|85|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{increase}} 83
| 11.36%
| {{increase}} 3.62%
| {{partial|[[Confidence and supply|Outside support]] for [[National Front (India)|NF]]}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|1989}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[1991 Indian general election|1991]]
| [[10th Lok Sabha]]
| 477
|{{Composition bar|120|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{increase}} 35
| 20.11%
| {{increase}} 8.75%
| {{no2|Opposition}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|1991}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[1996 Indian general election|1996]]
| [[11th Lok Sabha]]
|rowspan=4|[[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]]
| 471
|{{Composition bar|161|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{increase}} 41
| 20.29%
| {{increase}} 0.18%
| {{partial|Coalition, later opposition}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|1996}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[1998 Indian general election|1998]]
| [[12th Lok Sabha]]
| 388
|{{Composition bar|182|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{increase}} 21
| 25.59%
| {{increase}} 5.30%
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|1998}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[1999 Indian general election|1999]]
| [[13th Lok Sabha]]
| 339
|{{Composition bar|182|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{steady}}
| 23.75%
| {{decrease}} 1.84%
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|1999}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[2004 Indian general election|2004]]
| [[14th Lok Sabha]]
| 364
|{{Composition bar|138|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{decrease}} 44
| 22.16%
| {{decrease}} 1.69%
| {{no2|Opposition}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|2004}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[2009 Indian general election|2009]]
| [[15th Lok Sabha]]
|[[Lal Krishna Advani]]
| 433
|{{Composition bar|116|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{decrease}} 22
| 18.80%
| {{decrease}} 3.36%
| {{no2|Opposition}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|2009}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[2014 Indian general election|2014]]
| [[16th Lok Sabha]]
|rowspan=3|[[Narendra Modi]]
| 428
|{{Composition bar|282|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{increase}} 166
| 31.34%
| {{increase}} 12.54%
| {{yes2|Majority}}
|{{sfn|Election Commission|2014}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[2019 Indian general election|2019]]
| [[17th Lok Sabha]]
| 436
|{{Composition bar|303|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{increase}} 21
| 37.46%
|{{increase}} 6.12%
| {{yes2|Majority}}
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kumar |first=Sanjay |date=28 May 2019 |title=BJP: Here's how BJP earned the massive mandate: Explained in numbers |work=[[The Economic Times]] |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/heres-how-bjp-earned-massive-mandate-explained-in-numbers/articleshow/69529857.cms |url-status=live |access-date=14 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203005824/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/heres-how-bjp-earned-massive-mandate-explained-in-numbers/articleshow/69529857.cms |archive-date=3 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=20. Performance of National Parties |url=https://old.eci.gov.in/files/file/10955-20-performance-of-national-parties/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210107073533/https://eci.gov.in/files/file/10955-20-performance-of-national-parties/ |archive-date=7 January 2021 |access-date=21 December 2020 |website=Election Commission of India}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:center;"
| [[2024 Indian general election|2024]]
| [[18th Lok Sabha]]
| 441
|{{Composition bar|240|543|{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
| {{decrease}} 63
| 36.56%
|{{decrease}} 0.8%
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|
|}

==Presence in states and Union Territories==
[[File:BJP presence by states & union territories.svg|thumb]]
The BJP has previously held power in [[Karnataka]], [[Jharkhand]] and [[Himachal Pradesh]]. Also it has been the junior coalition partner in governments in [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]] (with the [[Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party]]), [[Punjab, India|Punjab]] (with the [[Shiromani Akali Dal]]), and [[Tamil Nadu]] (with the [[All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam]]). It has never held power in [[Kerala]], [[Telangana]], and [[West Bengal]].{{citation needed|date=November 2024}}

In addition to the NDA, the BJP is also a part of a regional political alliance in Northeast India named the [[North-East Democratic Alliance]].<ref name="thewire.in-25May16">{{Cite web |last=Pisharoty |first=Sangeeta Barooah |date=25 May 2016 |title=BJP Crafts North East Democratic Alliance to Make the Region 'Congress Mukt' |url=https://thewire.in/politics/bjp-crafts-north-east-democratic-alliance-to-make-the-region-congress-mukt |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160526113451/http://thewire.in/2016/05/25/bjp-crafts-north-east-democratic-alliance-to-make-the-region-congress-mukt-38680/ |archive-date=26 May 2016 |website=[[The Wire (India)|The Wire]]}}</ref><ref name="hindustantimes.com">{{Cite web |date=25 May 2016 |title=Amit Shah holds meeting with northeast CMs, forms alliance |work=Hindustan Times |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/india/amit-shah-holds-meeting-with-northeast-cms-forms-alliance/story-YDYLQ6YsImuzZOQ6Zev5MO.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160526061921/http://www.hindustantimes.com/india/amit-shah-holds-meeting-with-northeast-cms-forms-alliance/story-YDYLQ6YsImuzZOQ6Zev5MO.html |archive-date=26 May 2016}}</ref><ref name="ndtv.com">{{Cite web |title=BJP Acts East With New Anti-Congress Bloc, Puts Himanta Biswa in Charge |url=http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/hours-after-sonowal-oath-ceremony-bjp-forms-anti-congress-bloc-in-northeast-1409824 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160525135628/http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/hours-after-sonowal-oath-ceremony-bjp-forms-anti-congress-bloc-in-northeast-1409824 |archive-date=25 May 2016}}</ref>

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
!Colspan=4|Lower House
|-
!Legislature
!Seats
!Legislative leader
!Status
|-
|[[Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Andhra Pradesh]]
|{{Composition bar|8|175|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Penmetsa Vishnu Kumar Raju]]
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
|[[Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Arunachal Pradesh]]
|{{Composition bar|46|60|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Pema Khandu]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|[[Assam Legislative Assembly|Assam]]
|{{Composition bar|64|126|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Himanta Biswa Sarma]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|[[Bihar Legislative Assembly|Bihar]]
|{{Composition bar|82|243|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Samrat Choudhary]]
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
|[[Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly|Chhattisgarh]]
|{{Composition bar|54|90|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Vishnu Deo Sai]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|[[Delhi Legislative Assembly|Delhi]]
|{{Composition bar|48|70|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Rekha Gupta]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|[[Goa Legislative Assembly|Goa]]
|{{Composition bar|28|40|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Pramod Sawant]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|[[Gujarat Legislative Assembly|Gujarat]]
|{{Composition bar|161|182|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Bhupendrabhai Patel]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|[[Haryana Legislative Assembly|Haryana]]
|{{Composition bar|48|90|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Nayab Singh Saini]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Himachal Pradesh]]
|{{Composition bar|28|68|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Jai Ram Thakur]]
|{{no2|Opposition}}
|-
|
[[Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly|Jammu and Kashmir]]
|{{Composition bar|28|90|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Sunil Kumar Sharma (Jammu and Kashmir)|Sunil Kumar Sharma]]
|{{no2|Opposition}}
|-
|
[[Jharkhand Legislative Assembly|Jharkhand]]
|{{Composition bar|21|81|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Babulal Marandi]]
|{{no2|Opposition}}
|-
|
[[Karnataka Legislative Assembly|Karnataka]]
|{{Composition bar|66|224|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[R. Ashoka]]
|{{no2|Opposition}}
|-
|
[[Kerala Legislative Assembly|Kerala]]
|{{Composition bar|0|140|hex=#FF9933}}
|Colspan=2 Bgcolor=#CDCDCD|No Representation
|-
|
[[Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Madhya Pradesh]]
|{{Composition bar|165|230|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Mohan Yadav]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Maharashtra Legislative Assembly|Maharashtra]]
|{{Composition bar|132|288|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Devendra Fadnavis]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Manipur Legislative Assembly|Manipur]]
|{{Composition bar|37|60|hex=#FF9933}}
|'''TBD'''
|bgcolor=Salmon|President Rule
|-
|
[[Meghalaya Legislative Assembly|Meghalaya]]
|{{Composition bar|2|60|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Sanbor Shullai]]
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
|
[[Mizoram Legislative Assembly|Mizoram]]
|{{Composition bar|2|40|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[K. Beichhua]]
|{{partial|Others}}
|-
|
[[Nagaland Legislative Assembly|Nagaland]]
|{{Composition bar|12|60|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Y. Patton]]
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
|
[[Odisha Legislative Assembly|Odisha]]
|{{Composition bar|78|147|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Mohan Charan Majhi]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Puducherry Legislative Assembly|Puducherry]]
|{{Composition bar|9|33|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[A. Namassivayam]]
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
|
[[Punjab Legislative Assembly|Punjab]]
|{{Composition bar|2|117|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Ashwani Kumar Sharma]]
|{{partial|Others}}
|-
|
[[Rajasthan Legislative Assembly|Rajasthan]]
|{{Composition bar|119|200|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Bhajan Lal Sharma]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Sikkim Legislative Assembly|Sikkim]]
|{{Composition bar|0|32|hex=#FF9933}}
|Bgcolor=#CDCDCD|No Representation
|{{yes2|Alliance}}
|-
|
[[Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly|Tamil Nadu]]
|{{Composition bar|4|234|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Nainar Nagendran]]
|{{partial|Others}}
|-
|
[[Telangana Legislative Assembly|Telangana]]
|{{Composition bar|8|119|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Alleti Maheshwar Reddy]]
|{{partial|Others}}
|-
|
[[Tripura Legislative Assembly|Tripura]]
|{{Composition bar|33|60|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Manik Saha]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Uttar Pradesh]]
|{{Composition bar|258|403|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Yogi Adityanath]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly|Uttarakhand]]
|{{Composition bar|47|70|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Pushkar Singh Dhami]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[West Bengal Legislative Assembly|West Bengal]]
|{{Composition bar|65|294|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Suvendu Adhikari]]
|{{no2|Opposition}}
|-
!Colspan=4|Upper House
|-
|[[Rajya Sabha]]
|{{Composition bar|98|245|hex={{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}}}
|[[J. P. Nadda]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|[[Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council|Andhra Pradesh]]
|{{Composition bar|1|58|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Somu Veerraju]]
|{{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
|[[Bihar Legislative Council|Bihar]]
|{{Composition bar|24|75|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Hari Sahni]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Karnataka Legislative Council|Karnataka]]
|{{Composition bar|30|75|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Chalavadi Narayanaswamy]] 
|{{no2|Opposition}}
|-
|
[[Maharashtra Legislative Council|Maharashtra]]
|{{Composition bar|22|78|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Pravin Darekar]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|
[[Telangana Legislative Council|Telangana]]
|{{Composition bar|3|40|hex=#FF9933}}
|A.Venkata Narayana Reddy
|{{partial|Others}}
|-
|
[[Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council|Uttar Pradesh]]
|{{Composition bar|79|100|hex=#FF9933}}
|[[Keshav Prasad Maurya]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|}

== List of heads of government ==
=== List of prime ministers ===
{{further|List of prime ministers of India}}
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!rowspan="2"|No.
!rowspan="2"|Portrait
!rowspan="2"|Prime minister
!rowspan="2"|Constituency
!colspan="3"|Term in office
!rowspan="2"|Lok Sabha
!rowspan="2"|Cabinet
|-
!Start
!End
!Tenure
|-
!rowspan="3"|1
|rowspan="3"|[[File:Atal Bihari Vajpayee (crop 2).jpg|100px]]
|rowspan="3"|[[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]]
|rowspan="3"|[[Lucknow (Lok Sabha constituency)|Lucknow]]
|16 May 1996
|1 June 1996
|{{ayd|16 May 1996|1 June 1996}}
|[[11th Lok Sabha|11th]]
|[[First Vajpayee ministry|Vajpayee I]]
|-
|rowspan="2"|19 March 1998
|rowspan="2"|22 May 2004
|rowspan="2"|{{ayd|19 March 1998|22 May 2004}}
|[[12th Lok Sabha|12th]]
|[[Second Vajpayee ministry|Vajpayee II]]
|-
|[[13th Lok Sabha|13th]]
|[[Third Vajpayee ministry|Vajpayee III]]
|-
! rowspan="3" |2
| rowspan="3" |[[File:Official Photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi Potrait.png|100px]]
| rowspan="3" |[[Narendra Modi]]
| rowspan="3" |[[Varanasi (Lok Sabha constituency)|Varanasi]]
| rowspan="3" |26 May 2014
| rowspan="3" |'''''Incumbent'''''
| rowspan="3" |{{ayd|26 May 2014}}
|[[16th Lok Sabha|16th]]
|[[First Modi ministry|Modi I]]
|-
|[[17th Lok Sabha|17th]]
|[[Second Modi ministry|Modi II]]
|-
|[[18th Lok Sabha|18th]]
|[[Third Modi ministry|Modi III]]
|-
|}

=== List of incumbent chief ministers ===
[[File:BJP CM History 2025 As Delhi election.png|400px|right]]
{{Main|List of chief ministers from the Bharatiya Janata Party}}
{{As of|2025|02|22}}, 55 people from Bharatiya Janata Party have held the position of a chief minister, 14 of whom are incumbent.

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
|+Incumbent Chief Ministers from the BJP
!No.
!State
!Portrait
!Name
!Cabinet
!colspan="2"|Governing coalition
|-
!rowspan="2"|1
|rowspan="2"|[[Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Arunachal Pradesh]]
|rowspan="2"|[[File:Pema Khandu in July 2016.jpg|80px|border]]
|rowspan="2"|[[Pema Khandu]]
|Rowspan=2|[[Fifth Pema Khandu ministry|Khandu V]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|{{Party color cell|National People's Party (India)}}
|[[National People's Party (India)|NPP]]
|-
!rowspan="3"|2
|rowspan="3"|[[Assam Legislative Assembly|Assam]]
|rowspan="3"|[[File:Himanta Biswa Sarma with PM Narendra Modi Cropped.jpg|80px|border]]
|rowspan="3"|[[Himanta Biswa Sarma]]
|Rowspan=3|[[Sarma ministry|Sarma I]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|{{Party color cell|Asom Gana Parishad}}
|[[Asom Gana Parishad|AGP]]
|-
|{{Party color cell|United People's Party Liberal}}
|[[United People's Party Liberal|UPPL]]
|-
!3
|[[Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly|Chhattisgarh]]
|[[File:Vishnudeo Sai.jpg|80px|border]]
|[[Vishnudeo Sai]]
|[[Vishnudeo Sai ministry|Sai I]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
!4
|[[Delhi Legislative Assembly|Delhi]]
| [[File:Rekha Gupta, 9th Chief Minister of Delhi.jpg|80px|border]] 
|[[Rekha Gupta]]
|[[Rekha Gupta ministry|Gupta]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
!rowspan="3"|5
|rowspan="3"|[[Goa Legislative Assembly|Goa]]
|rowspan="3"|[[File:The Chief Minister of Goa, Shri Pramod Sawant.jpg|80px|border]]
|rowspan="3"|[[Pramod Sawant]]
|rowspan="3"|[[Second Pramod Sawant ministry|Sawant II]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|{{Party color cell|Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party}}
|[[Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party|MGP]]
|-
|bgcolor=CDCDCD|
|[[Independent politician|IND]]
|-
!6
|[[Gujarat Legislative Assembly|Gujarat]]
|[[File:Bhupendrabhai Patel accompanies Narendra Modi at Rajkot (cropped).jpg|80px|border]]
|[[Bhupendrabhai Patel]]
|[[Second Bhupendrabhai Patel ministry|Patel II]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
!7
|[[Haryana Legislative Assembly|Haryana]]
|[[File:Nayab Singh Saini 2023.jpg|80px|border]]
|[[Nayab Singh Saini]]
|[[Second Saini ministry|Saini II]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
!8
|[[Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Madhya Pradesh]]
|[[File:PM attends swearing in ceremony of Mohan Yadav and his deputies at Bhopal, in Madhya Pradesh.jpg|80px|border]]
|[[Mohan Yadav]]
|[[Mohan Yadav ministry|Yadav I]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
!rowspan="8"|9
|rowspan="8"|[[Maharashtra Legislative Assembly|Maharashtra]]
|rowspan="8"|[[File:Devendra Fadnavis @Vidhan Sabha 04-03-2021.jpg|101x101px]]
|rowspan="8"|[[Devendra Fadnavis]]
|rowspan="8"|[[Third Fadnavis ministry|Fadnavis III]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|{{Party color cell|Shiv Sena}}
|[[Shiv Sena|SHS]]
|-
|{{Party color cell|Nationalist Congress Party}}
|[[Nationalist Congress Party|NCP]]
|-
|bgcolor=#CB00F1|
|JSS
|-
| bgcolor=#FFFF00|
|[[Rashtriya Samaj Paksha|RSP]]
|-
| bgcolor=#1A34BB|
|RYSP
|-
| bgcolor=#F58E7D|
|RSVA
|-
| bgcolor=#CDCDCD|
| [[Independent (politician)|IND]]
|-
!rowspan="4"|10
|rowspan="4"|[[Manipur Legislative Assembly|Manipur]]
|rowspan="4"|-
|rowspan="4"|-
|Rowspan=4|-
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|style="background:#DB7093|
|[[National People's Party (India)|NPP]]
|-
|style="background:#906;"|
|[[Naga People's Front|NPF]]
|-
|style="background:#CDCDCD;"|
|[[Independent politician|IND]]
|-
!11
|[[Odisha Legislative Assembly|Odisha]]
|[[File:Mohan Charan Majhi (2024 Image).jpg|113x113px]]
|[[Mohan Charan Majhi]]
|[[Mohan Charan Majhi ministry|Majhi I]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
!12
|[[Rajasthan Legislative Assembly|Rajasthan]]
|[[File:Bhajan Lal Sharma.jpg|80px|border]]
|[[Bhajan Lal Sharma]]
|[[Bhajan Lal Sharma ministry|Sharma I]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
!rowspan="2"|13
|rowspan="2"|[[Tripura Legislative Assembly|Tripura]]
|rowspan="2"|[[File:Manik Saha Official Portrait 2023.jpg|80px|border]]
|rowspan="2"|[[Manik Saha]]
|rowspan="2"|[[Second Saha ministry|Saha II]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|style="background:green;"|
|[[Indigenous People's Front of Tripura|IPFT]]
|-
!Rowspan="4"|14
|rowspan="4"|[[Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Uttar Pradesh]]
|rowspan="4"|[[File:Yogiji in 2023.jpg|107x107px]]
|rowspan="4"|[[Yogi Adityanath]]
|Rowspan=4|[[Second Yogi Adityanath ministry|Adityanath II]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|style="background:#306;"|
|[[Apna Dal (Sonelal)|AD(S)]]
|-
|style="background:green"|
|[[Rashtriya Lok Dal|RLD]]
|-
|style="background:#b80000;"|
|[[NISHAD Party|NP]]
|-
!15
|[[Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly|Uttarakhand]]
|[[File:Pushkar Dhami.jpg|80px]]
|[[Pushkar Singh Dhami]]
|[[Second Dhami ministry|Dhami II]]
|{{Party color cell|Bharatiya Janata Party}}
|BJP
|-
|}

== See also ==
{{div col|colwidth=40em}}
* [[Leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Parliament of India]]
* [[List of political parties in India]]
* [[List of presidents of the Bharatiya Janata Party]]
* [[List of state presidents of the Bharatiya Janata Party]]
* [[Organisation of the Bharatiya Janata Party]]
* [[Politics of India]]
* [[List of ruling political parties by country]]
{{div col end}}

== References ==
=== Explanatory notes ===
{{Notelist|30em}}

=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== General and cited sources ===
{{Refbegin|30em}}
<!-- ToDo: Re-organize A->Z by last names -->
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{{Refend}}

== Further reading ==
{{Refbegin|30em}}
{{Main|Bibliography of the Sangh Parivar}}
* {{cite book|first=Gurdas M.|last=Ahuja|title=Bharatiya Janata Party and Resurgent India|publisher=Ram Company|year=2004 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |first1=Walter K. |last1=Andersen |author-link=Walter K. Andersen |first2=Shridhar D. |last2=Damle |title=The Brotherhood in Saffron: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Hindu Revivalism |url=https://archive.org/details/brotherhoodinsaf0000ande |url-access=registration |orig-date=Originally published by Westview Press |publisher=Vistaar Publications |location=Delhi |year=1987 |ref=none }}
* {{cite book |last1=Bhambhri |first1=C.P. |title=Bharatiya Janata Party : Periphery to Centre |date=2001 |publisher=Shipra |location=Delhi |isbn=978-81-7541-078-7 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |first=Craig |last=Baxter |author-link=Craig Baxter |title=The Jana Sangh&nbsp;— A Biography of an Indian Political Party |publisher=Oxford University Press, Bombay |year=1971 |orig-date=first published by [[University of Pennsylvania Press]] 1969 |isbn=978-0-8122-7583-4 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/janasanghbiograp0000baxt |ref=none }}
* {{cite journal|last1=Chadha|first1=Kalyani|first2=Pallavi|last2=Guha|title=The Bharatiya Janata Party's online campaign and citizen involvement in India's 2014 election|url=https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/4947|journal=[[International Journal of Communication]]|volume=10|date=2016|access-date=16 May 2021|archive-date=16 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210516184915/https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/4947|url-status=live}}
* {{cite journal|last=Ganguly|first=Sumit|title=Hindu nationalism and the foreign policy of India's Bharatiya Janata Party|journal=Transatlantic Academy Paper Series|volume=2|date=2015|pages=1–15|url=https://www.gmfus.org/sites/default/files/publications/pdf/Ganguly_HinduNationalismForeignPolicy_Jun15_web.pdf|isbn=978-1-5292-0460-5|access-date=11 January 2021|archive-date=4 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304071320/https://www.gmfus.org/sites/default/files/publications/pdf/Ganguly_HinduNationalismForeignPolicy_Jun15_web.pdf|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite book |last=Graham |first=B. D. |title=Hindu Nationalism and Indian Politics: The Origins and Development of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1990 |isbn=978-0-521-38348-6 |ref=none}}
* {{cite journal|doi=10.1080/00856401.2015.1089826 |title=Hindu Nationalism in Action: The Bharatiya Janata Party and Indian Politics |year=2015 |last1=Harriss |first1=John |journal=South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies |volume=38 |issue=4 |pages=712–718 |s2cid=147615034 |doi-access=free }}
* {{cite book |last1=Malik |first1=Yogendra K. |last2=Singh |first2=V.B. |title=Hindu Nationalists in India : The Rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party |date=1994 |publisher=Westview Press |location=Boulder, Colorado |isbn=978-0-8133-8810-6}}
* {{cite book |last=Jaffrelot |first=Christophe |author-link=Christophe Jaffrelot|title=The Hindu Nationalist Movement and Indian Politics |publisher=C. Hurst & Co. Publishers |year=1996 |isbn=978-1-85065-301-1 |ref=none}}
* {{cite journal|last=Jaffrelot|first=Christophe|author-link=Christophe Jaffrelot|title=Communal Riots in Gujarat: The State at Risk?|journal=Heidelberg Papers in South Asian and Comparative Politics|date=July 2003|page=16|url=http://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/volltextserver/4127/1/hpsacp17.pdf|access-date=5 November 2013|ref=none|archive-date=4 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131204131058/http://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/volltextserver/4127/1/hpsacp17.pdf|url-status=live}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Jain|first1=Varsha|first2=Ganesh|last2=B.E.|title=Understanding the Magic of Credibility for Political Leaders: A Case of India and Narendra Modi.|journal=Journal of Political Marketing|volume=19|issue=1–2|date=2020|pages=15–33|doi=10.1080/15377857.2019.1652222|s2cid=202247610}}
* {{cite book |last1=Mishra |first1=Madhusudan |title=Bharatiya Janata Party and India's Foreign Policy |date=1997 |publisher=Uppal Pub. House |location=New Delhi |isbn=978-81-85565-79-8 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last=Nag |first=Kingshuk |author-link=Kingshuk Nag |title=The Saffron Tide: The Rise of the BJP |publisher=Rupa Publications |year=2014 |isbn=978-8129134295 |ref=none}}
* Nag, Kingshuk. ''Atal Bihari Vajpayee'' (Rupa Publications, 2016).
* Palshikar, Suhas, Sanjay Kumar, and Sanjay Lodha, eds. ''Electoral Politics in India: The Resurgence of the Bharatiya Janata Party'' (Taylor & Francis, 2017).
* Raghavan, G.N.S. ''New Era in the Indian Polity, A Study of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the BJP'' (1996).
* {{cite journal |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41856327 |jstor=41856327 |title=Foreign Policy Position of Bharatiya Janata Party Towards Issues of India Pakistan Relations |last1=Sanjeev Kr |first1=H. M. |journal=The Indian Journal of Political Science |year=2007 |volume=68 |issue=2 |pages=275–291 |access-date=11 January 2021 |archive-date=13 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210113184500/https://www.jstor.org/stable/41856327 |url-status=live }}
* {{cite book |author1=Devendra P. Sharma |author2=C.P. Thakur |title=India under Atal Behari Vajpayee : The BJP Era |date=1999 |publisher=UBS Publishers' Distributors |location=New Delhi |isbn=978-81-7476-250-4 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last1=Stein|first1=Burton|title=A history of India|year=2010|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|location=Chichester, UK|isbn=978-1-4051-9509-6|edition= edited by David Arnold. 2nd |ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last1=Rao|first1=Ramesh|title=Coalition conundrum: the BJP's trials, tribulations, and triumphs|year=2001|publisher=Har Anand|isbn=9788124108093 |ref=none}}
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
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{{Wikinews category|Bharatiya Janata Party}}{{Commons and category}}
* {{Official website|https://www.bjp.org/}}
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* {{Internet Archive author|sname=Bharatiya Janata Party}}
* {{Britannica|64033}}

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