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The New BJP: Modi and the Making of the World’s Largest Political Party
In election after election since 2014, both at the Union and state levels, the BJP has won more often than it has lost—a clear indication of growth beyond its core Hindu base. The question is, why do so many people across divisions of caste, religion and gender vote for a party with unapologetically aggressive Hindutva politics? Are its much-publicised development schemes, whatever their flaws, the big pull factor? Or the active mobilisation of the RSS cadre to its cause?
In this fascinating revisionist history, political scientist and journalist Nalin Mehta examines how the BJP became the world’s largest political party. He goes beyond the usual narrative of the party’s Hindutva politics to explain how, under Narendra Modi, it reshaped the Indian polity using its own brand of social engineering. This reconstruction was cleverly powered by new caste coalitions, the claim of a new welfare state that focused on marginalised social groups and the making of a women-voter base.
Based on data from three unique indices—the Mehta–Singh Social Index, which studies the caste composition of Indian political parties; the Narad Index, which calculates communication patterns across topics and audiences; and PollNiti, which connects and tallies hundreds of political and economic datasets—The New BJP is full of startling insights into the way both the party and the country function. Previously untapped historical records, exclusive interviews with party leaders and comprehensive reportage from across India provide a fresh understanding of the BJP’s growth areas, including the Northeast and south India.
A lucid and objective study of the BJP and India today, this is a book that demands engagement and debate from every side of the political divide.
In this fascinating revisionist history, political scientist and journalist Nalin Mehta examines how the BJP became the world’s largest political party. He goes beyond the usual narrative of the party’s Hindutva politics to explain how, under Narendra Modi, it reshaped the Indian polity using its own brand of social engineering. This reconstruction was cleverly powered by new caste coalitions, the claim of a new welfare state that focused on marginalised social groups and the making of a women-voter base.
Based on data from three unique indices—the Mehta–Singh Social Index, which studies the caste composition of Indian political parties; the Narad Index, which calculates communication patterns across topics and audiences; and PollNiti, which connects and tallies hundreds of political and economic datasets—The New BJP is full of startling insights into the way both the party and the country function. Previously untapped historical records, exclusive interviews with party leaders and comprehensive reportage from across India provide a fresh understanding of the BJP’s growth areas, including the Northeast and south India.
A lucid and objective study of the BJP and India today, this is a book that demands engagement and debate from every side of the political divide.
840 pages, Hardcover
First published January 3, 2022
34 people are currently reading
475 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
January 6, 2022
Phenomenal read if you’re trying to understand the nature of BJP’s rise and staying power in India. Disclaimer: I helped the author with data insights for this book
The book does 3 things: First, it takes a data-driven approach to understanding how the BJP has expanded its social coalition. Second, it quantifies the speeches and official statements made by different political parties to understand who talks more about what topics. And thirdly, it draws from a deep well of interviews from party insiders and academics to understand the internal workings of the party.
I recommend reading this one chapter at a time, instead of reading it cover to cover.
5 main takeaways:
1. Political parties often get their start with effectively counter-positioning, but must build efficient organisational structures and processes to have staying power
2. What brings voters into your tent and what keeps them there are not generally the same. As a BJP leader said, “Identity politics gives the flywheel initial velocity, but efficient disbursement of welfare is what keeps it spinning”
3. The use of digital – particularly for micro-messaging to different communities – is a superpower when it comes to targeting different messages to different audiences
4. Direct bank transfers and other ways to efficiently disburse welfare = more political goodwill for the same welfare spend
5. Welfare spending cannot be sustained without real economic growth. Reliance on welfare spending and increased need for defence spending in the face of declining growth is the biggest challenges for the BJP right now
The book does 3 things: First, it takes a data-driven approach to understanding how the BJP has expanded its social coalition. Second, it quantifies the speeches and official statements made by different political parties to understand who talks more about what topics. And thirdly, it draws from a deep well of interviews from party insiders and academics to understand the internal workings of the party.
I recommend reading this one chapter at a time, instead of reading it cover to cover.
5 main takeaways:
1. Political parties often get their start with effectively counter-positioning, but must build efficient organisational structures and processes to have staying power
2. What brings voters into your tent and what keeps them there are not generally the same. As a BJP leader said, “Identity politics gives the flywheel initial velocity, but efficient disbursement of welfare is what keeps it spinning”
3. The use of digital – particularly for micro-messaging to different communities – is a superpower when it comes to targeting different messages to different audiences
4. Direct bank transfers and other ways to efficiently disburse welfare = more political goodwill for the same welfare spend
5. Welfare spending cannot be sustained without real economic growth. Reliance on welfare spending and increased need for defence spending in the face of declining growth is the biggest challenges for the BJP right now
November 7, 2022
3.5/5 Recently, Western intellectual Salvatore Babones said that for Indian intellectuals/journalists/academics , their (intense) dislike for India's ruling party had turned into dislike against the state (country of India) itself. I call these Leftists retards - the mirror-image of bhakts. Thankfully this book is not by a retard.
Whether you like or loath the BJP / Right-Wing, the writing should be grounded , factually correct and rigorously researched. And if you talk of principles, talk about them consistently - gender-equality cannot mean different things for Hindus and Muslims. Secondly, the readers' intelligence must be respected and he/she should be allowed to frame his own opinions rather than reading a rant. The author seems to be left-of-center but he has intelligently prevented his own ideology discolouring a wonderful study.
This book is a comprehensive study of the BJP - right from its roots, affiliates ("Sangh parivar"), its ideologies, strategies and tactics. People who follow news regularly may skim some part of it but it is still worth a read. I would suggest reading along with RSS: A View to the Inside and Republic of Hindutva: How the Sangh Is Reshaping Indian Democracy to understand these institutions in-depth.
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PS:- Think carefully. If even Sweden elects a Right-Wing government, isnt something really really wrong with the Left-liberal worldview ? Are they even aware that they are in an echo-chamber ? When do they give up their belief in their infallibility ?
Maybe they think 50% of Swedes (or British/Italians/Americans/Indians) have suddenly turned evil :P
Whether you like or loath the BJP / Right-Wing, the writing should be grounded , factually correct and rigorously researched. And if you talk of principles, talk about them consistently - gender-equality cannot mean different things for Hindus and Muslims. Secondly, the readers' intelligence must be respected and he/she should be allowed to frame his own opinions rather than reading a rant. The author seems to be left-of-center but he has intelligently prevented his own ideology discolouring a wonderful study.
This book is a comprehensive study of the BJP - right from its roots, affiliates ("Sangh parivar"), its ideologies, strategies and tactics. People who follow news regularly may skim some part of it but it is still worth a read. I would suggest reading along with RSS: A View to the Inside and Republic of Hindutva: How the Sangh Is Reshaping Indian Democracy to understand these institutions in-depth.
-------------------------------------------------------------
PS:- Think carefully. If even Sweden elects a Right-Wing government, isnt something really really wrong with the Left-liberal worldview ? Are they even aware that they are in an echo-chamber ? When do they give up their belief in their infallibility ?
Maybe they think 50% of Swedes (or British/Italians/Americans/Indians) have suddenly turned evil :P
March 12, 2022
Whether one likes it or not BJP is here to stay for a long time as a potent force in Indian politics and governance. Its meteoric rise attributed as a black swan event by many pundits has been contested in this tome by Nalin Mehta. Armed with copious data acquired using latest models, the author painstakingly describes the many initiatives, fluid principles, underlying ideologies, planned growth and aggressive expansion of the mammoth party that threatens the very existence of the Indian GoP.
September 1, 2025
Un dos traballos máis exhaustivos e emocionantes que coñezo de análise de política contemporánea. Dende un punto de vista puramente sociolóxico como disciplina a súa rigurosidade e capacidade de rexistro estadístico é moi impactante, pero, sobre todo, consegue ser máis que o libro dun partido para analizar a meirande parte de conflitos sociais que a India leva vivindo os últimos dez anos. Comentáballe un colega como era unha delicia lelo para os frikis da xeopolítica e, máis concretamente, as lóxicas internas dos partidos que están gobernando os grandes imperios asiáticos contemporáneos —India e China, que xusto acaban de ter unha importante reunión sobre as súas futuras colaboracións—; pero penso que é interesante para calquera persoa interesada polo mundo sexa por un aspecto político institucional, cultural ou meramente sociolóxico. Todo o consegue ofrecer este libro.
December 23, 2024
India held a general election from April 19th to June 1st, 2024. It was the largest election in human history.
Incumbent PM Narendra Modi won a narrow victory. His Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost an absolute majority in the Lok Sabha but his coalition maintained control. Assuming he completes his term, his 15 years as PM will equal Indira Gandhi and be exceeded only by Nehru himself.
Western media talks about Modi’s right-wing government and creeping Hindu nationalism. What does this mean? And how did the BJP usurp Congress and become India's preeminent political party when it won the general election in 2014?
The New BJP: Modi And the Making of the World’s Largest Political Party (2022) gives us a look under the hood at a highly successful political party: what it believes and the mechanics of its electoral success.
---------
For a supposedly right-wing party, BJP economic policy hews surprisingly close to socialism. The most consistent priorities that Modi mentions are inflation reduction and poverty eradication [280]. Modi has made income taxes more progressive than his predecessors [287]. And more often than not, Modi and BJP talk about a strong private sector as a means to a strong welfare state rather than an end in itself [311]. What gives? He sounds sounds more like Indira Gandhi (“Garibi Hatao”) than Javier Milei.
In fact, it was an emphasis on a robust and well-functioning welfare state that won the BJP control of Lok Sabha in 2014 and 2019. Since the 2000s, BJP has emphasized and expanded a system of Direct Benefit Transfers (DBTs) whereby labarthis who are eligible for housing subsidies or money for toilet construction etc simply get money transferred directly to a personal account (vs through a local ministry), reducing the opportunity for corruption [63] and endearing Modi to the lower classes.
Modi’s BJC also runs vastly more lower caste candidates than Congress as well. Modi himself is an OBC (“Other Backwards Caste”), and e.g. in 2017 BJP ran 35.1% OBC candidates against 15.8% OBC representation in Congress [38-9].
BJP is the party of the people: the poor and the lower castes across India’s Hindu heartland.
But what about the Ram Temple controversy, and what of the Hindu nationalism that we in the US read about? Isn’t there an uglier (or at least more controversial) side to the party too?
BJP was born in 1980 as a successor to the Prasad Mukherjee’s Jan Sangh party, which in turn was founded in 1951 [223]. The core issue that separated Mukherjee from Nehru’s Congress was the treatment of Hindus in Pakistan (especially East Pakistan) and Kashmir [238-9]: Mukherjee believed that India was obliged to protect the interest of these Hindus; Nehru while not unconcerned, felt that “India” ended at the border.
Most in the BJP today would probably say that India is a “Hindu” country and pluralist, but not a “secular” country in the Nehruvian sense [367]. What does that mean? BJP believes in Hindu cultural primacy – not the modern religion of Hinduism exactly – but the common Vedic culture with roots in ancient history, stretching from the Indus east. In this framing, Muslims, Jains, and Sikhs are all a part of “Hindu” culture.
That doesn’t mean that BJP doesn’t inflame anti-Muslim sentiment now and again to boost election turn out [89-90] -- especially in areas with significant Muslim populations. But my rough assessment is that it is more instrumental than core. And what is described as Hindu nationalism to me feels more like an “America First” pride in heritage rather than primarily a violent and exclusionary movement.
To Modi’s BJP, welfare and caste representation is key. Pride in culture and heritage is a part of its messaging, but it appears to be deployed tactically more than systematically. E.g. in 2019, “Congress”, “development”, and “farmers” were all mentioned vastly more in BJP press releases than “religion”, “Hindu”, or “mandir” [111].
----------
Revolt of the Public by Martin Gurri talks about the difficulty of institutions maintaining any legitimacy in a world of social media. From Tahrir Square to Occupy Wall Street to popular sentiment in the US about CDC and FDA, the 2010s saw many castles reduced to rubble at the hands of the Twitter mob.
BJP has jiu jitsu’d social media into an asset. As India’s internet users grew from 6.5 crore in 2014 to nearly 60 crore in 2019 [136], BJP outspent Congress fourfold on Google advertising and nearly threefold on Facebook [139].
But more importantly it uses its vast membership network to promote the success of welfare schemes from the bottom up. Each voting booth is staffed with a BJP field operative (panna pramukhs) whose job is to develop relationships with locals and engage them on FB and WhatsApp groups [196]. The BJP is constantly in your face and the toilets and houses and subsidies it delivers to its constituents are constantly in your WhatsApp groups and FB feeds [196-200].
----------
The BJP is a lot different from what I expected after reading about it. Modi is similar to Trump in his appeals to the lower class and pride in country, but I have a hard time calling someone so enthusiastic about welfare and relatively unenthusiastic about private enterprise “right wing” in any Western sense.
There is something quite optimistic about BJP. It builds support and shows voters its efficacy at a very local level using the tools of social media. It is an institution – one of the few I can think of and perhaps the only one – that has GAINED credibility in an internet age. No matter how you look at it, an impressive accomplishment.
Incumbent PM Narendra Modi won a narrow victory. His Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost an absolute majority in the Lok Sabha but his coalition maintained control. Assuming he completes his term, his 15 years as PM will equal Indira Gandhi and be exceeded only by Nehru himself.
Western media talks about Modi’s right-wing government and creeping Hindu nationalism. What does this mean? And how did the BJP usurp Congress and become India's preeminent political party when it won the general election in 2014?
The New BJP: Modi And the Making of the World’s Largest Political Party (2022) gives us a look under the hood at a highly successful political party: what it believes and the mechanics of its electoral success.
---------
For a supposedly right-wing party, BJP economic policy hews surprisingly close to socialism. The most consistent priorities that Modi mentions are inflation reduction and poverty eradication [280]. Modi has made income taxes more progressive than his predecessors [287]. And more often than not, Modi and BJP talk about a strong private sector as a means to a strong welfare state rather than an end in itself [311]. What gives? He sounds sounds more like Indira Gandhi (“Garibi Hatao”) than Javier Milei.
In fact, it was an emphasis on a robust and well-functioning welfare state that won the BJP control of Lok Sabha in 2014 and 2019. Since the 2000s, BJP has emphasized and expanded a system of Direct Benefit Transfers (DBTs) whereby labarthis who are eligible for housing subsidies or money for toilet construction etc simply get money transferred directly to a personal account (vs through a local ministry), reducing the opportunity for corruption [63] and endearing Modi to the lower classes.
Modi’s BJC also runs vastly more lower caste candidates than Congress as well. Modi himself is an OBC (“Other Backwards Caste”), and e.g. in 2017 BJP ran 35.1% OBC candidates against 15.8% OBC representation in Congress [38-9].
BJP is the party of the people: the poor and the lower castes across India’s Hindu heartland.
But what about the Ram Temple controversy, and what of the Hindu nationalism that we in the US read about? Isn’t there an uglier (or at least more controversial) side to the party too?
BJP was born in 1980 as a successor to the Prasad Mukherjee’s Jan Sangh party, which in turn was founded in 1951 [223]. The core issue that separated Mukherjee from Nehru’s Congress was the treatment of Hindus in Pakistan (especially East Pakistan) and Kashmir [238-9]: Mukherjee believed that India was obliged to protect the interest of these Hindus; Nehru while not unconcerned, felt that “India” ended at the border.
Most in the BJP today would probably say that India is a “Hindu” country and pluralist, but not a “secular” country in the Nehruvian sense [367]. What does that mean? BJP believes in Hindu cultural primacy – not the modern religion of Hinduism exactly – but the common Vedic culture with roots in ancient history, stretching from the Indus east. In this framing, Muslims, Jains, and Sikhs are all a part of “Hindu” culture.
That doesn’t mean that BJP doesn’t inflame anti-Muslim sentiment now and again to boost election turn out [89-90] -- especially in areas with significant Muslim populations. But my rough assessment is that it is more instrumental than core. And what is described as Hindu nationalism to me feels more like an “America First” pride in heritage rather than primarily a violent and exclusionary movement.
To Modi’s BJP, welfare and caste representation is key. Pride in culture and heritage is a part of its messaging, but it appears to be deployed tactically more than systematically. E.g. in 2019, “Congress”, “development”, and “farmers” were all mentioned vastly more in BJP press releases than “religion”, “Hindu”, or “mandir” [111].
----------
Revolt of the Public by Martin Gurri talks about the difficulty of institutions maintaining any legitimacy in a world of social media. From Tahrir Square to Occupy Wall Street to popular sentiment in the US about CDC and FDA, the 2010s saw many castles reduced to rubble at the hands of the Twitter mob.
BJP has jiu jitsu’d social media into an asset. As India’s internet users grew from 6.5 crore in 2014 to nearly 60 crore in 2019 [136], BJP outspent Congress fourfold on Google advertising and nearly threefold on Facebook [139].
But more importantly it uses its vast membership network to promote the success of welfare schemes from the bottom up. Each voting booth is staffed with a BJP field operative (panna pramukhs) whose job is to develop relationships with locals and engage them on FB and WhatsApp groups [196]. The BJP is constantly in your face and the toilets and houses and subsidies it delivers to its constituents are constantly in your WhatsApp groups and FB feeds [196-200].
----------
The BJP is a lot different from what I expected after reading about it. Modi is similar to Trump in his appeals to the lower class and pride in country, but I have a hard time calling someone so enthusiastic about welfare and relatively unenthusiastic about private enterprise “right wing” in any Western sense.
There is something quite optimistic about BJP. It builds support and shows voters its efficacy at a very local level using the tools of social media. It is an institution – one of the few I can think of and perhaps the only one – that has GAINED credibility in an internet age. No matter how you look at it, an impressive accomplishment.
July 25, 2024
Well researched and surprisingly unbiased! The book outlines how the BJP evolved over time from its Sangh roots to the Janata Party and finally to the BJP. It lineates how the ideology & vision/mission evolved, especially around the early 90s (Ram Janm Bhoomi movement), and post the defeat in 2004. The turnaround of the BJP under Rajnath Singh, Gadkari, and later Amit Shah- Modi duo is certainly worth further academic study. Several interesting case studies on org behaviour, operations, and the use of digital technologies for grass root cadre mobilization can be written on this period. This book certainly made it clear that the BJP's meteoric rise was much more than a Hinduvta campaign!
August 21, 2022
The data analysis part is boring, but the historical insight is delightful. Author claims to be neutral, but a slight tilt towards the lotus can be seen. Seems like a recap of news reports for us now, will be an important account for future readers
December 8, 2022
Editing is required for the next edition
November 3, 2023
In the exercise of constructing an appraisal of the tome titled "The New BJP" by the esteemed author Nalin Mehta, I find myself obliged to impart that the volume stands as an embodiment of literary alchemy. The illustrious analyst, Abhijit Iyer Mitra, whose opinion I hold in the highest esteem, extolled its virtues most emphatically. This encomium precipitated my acquaintance with the work, which, upon initial perusal—specifically the adulatory testimonials from figures of repute—caused me to be utterly agog.
It behoves me to articulate that I approach this review not from the exalted echelons of high society but as a pedestrian citizen of India, imbued with a voracious curiosity about the multifarious events that are sculpting the contours of my motherland.
The BJP, in 2019, scripted a narrative of historical consequence. The polity was rife with conjecture and theories, each attempting to dissect the vectors of monetary influence, communal stratification, media dominion, and populist measures. Yet, these strategic gambits were not without precedent in the annals of our political history. The enigma that incessantly gnawed at the fibres of my cerebration was the identification of the precise machinations that the BJP employed to secure their phoenix-like resurgence, marking their tenure as the first non-Congress political entity to reclaim the reins of governance.
Mr. Mehta's opus addresses this conundrum with erudition and analytic perspicacity. His discourse delves into the intricacies of individual-centric welfare initiatives, the party's sagacious engagement with its beneficiaries, and the adroit orchestration of communication that links the citizenry with the party's operatives. He expounds upon the meticulous socio-political reconstitution, the augmentation of the BJP's cadre vis-à-vis the RSS, and the strategic enrolment protocols that fortified its expansion.
The treatise's narrative strand weaves through the variegated voices of the BJP across the geographic tapestry of India, tethered by a filament of commonality. It elucidates both the boons and bane inherent in the party's ascendancy and praxis. Indeed, the volume is a cornucopia of insights for the scholar and the layman alike, yearning to discern the current political zeitgeist of India.
I am particularly compelled to reflect on the BJP's emphasis on the distaff side of society. Prior to my engagement with this text, my knowledge of governmental programmes targeting women was cursory; the depth and magnitude of this focus, as explicated within these pages, is simply staggering. The exposition extends to a meticulous historiography of the BJP, the Jan Sangh, and the RSS, from the symbolic inception of the Lotus to the formative years that starkly contravened the prevailing Nehruvian paradigm. The revelation of the RSS's subtler ideological propagation via societal contributions was an enlightenment to me.
Permeating my cogitations now is the revelatory ambition of Amit Shah to digitally catalogue these vast resources for scholarly perusal—a Herculean endeavour, given the extensive nature of the documented material. This begets the query: what magnitude of information, then, remains shrouded in the impenetrable veil of confidentiality pertaining to organisational and electoral strategies?
In sum, "The New BJP" is a tome of inestimable value, a veritable lodestone for those navigating the labyrinthine political landscape of India. To eschew its reading would be an act of self-imposed intellectual deprivation. It is a work that unequivocally merits the reader's time and contemplation, and I state with unreserved conviction that it is an indispensable addition to any discerning library.
It behoves me to articulate that I approach this review not from the exalted echelons of high society but as a pedestrian citizen of India, imbued with a voracious curiosity about the multifarious events that are sculpting the contours of my motherland.
The BJP, in 2019, scripted a narrative of historical consequence. The polity was rife with conjecture and theories, each attempting to dissect the vectors of monetary influence, communal stratification, media dominion, and populist measures. Yet, these strategic gambits were not without precedent in the annals of our political history. The enigma that incessantly gnawed at the fibres of my cerebration was the identification of the precise machinations that the BJP employed to secure their phoenix-like resurgence, marking their tenure as the first non-Congress political entity to reclaim the reins of governance.
Mr. Mehta's opus addresses this conundrum with erudition and analytic perspicacity. His discourse delves into the intricacies of individual-centric welfare initiatives, the party's sagacious engagement with its beneficiaries, and the adroit orchestration of communication that links the citizenry with the party's operatives. He expounds upon the meticulous socio-political reconstitution, the augmentation of the BJP's cadre vis-à-vis the RSS, and the strategic enrolment protocols that fortified its expansion.
The treatise's narrative strand weaves through the variegated voices of the BJP across the geographic tapestry of India, tethered by a filament of commonality. It elucidates both the boons and bane inherent in the party's ascendancy and praxis. Indeed, the volume is a cornucopia of insights for the scholar and the layman alike, yearning to discern the current political zeitgeist of India.
I am particularly compelled to reflect on the BJP's emphasis on the distaff side of society. Prior to my engagement with this text, my knowledge of governmental programmes targeting women was cursory; the depth and magnitude of this focus, as explicated within these pages, is simply staggering. The exposition extends to a meticulous historiography of the BJP, the Jan Sangh, and the RSS, from the symbolic inception of the Lotus to the formative years that starkly contravened the prevailing Nehruvian paradigm. The revelation of the RSS's subtler ideological propagation via societal contributions was an enlightenment to me.
Permeating my cogitations now is the revelatory ambition of Amit Shah to digitally catalogue these vast resources for scholarly perusal—a Herculean endeavour, given the extensive nature of the documented material. This begets the query: what magnitude of information, then, remains shrouded in the impenetrable veil of confidentiality pertaining to organisational and electoral strategies?
In sum, "The New BJP" is a tome of inestimable value, a veritable lodestone for those navigating the labyrinthine political landscape of India. To eschew its reading would be an act of self-imposed intellectual deprivation. It is a work that unequivocally merits the reader's time and contemplation, and I state with unreserved conviction that it is an indispensable addition to any discerning library.
April 23, 2023
A fascinating book on the ascendancy of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Indian politics, this tome by Nalin Mehta meticulously traces the party's evolution from its roots in the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) to its final emergence from the Janata Party in 1980. The BJP's astounding growth, beginning with a mere two seats in the 1984 elections to securing consecutive, unassailable majorities in 2014 and 2019, is a testament to its remarkable transformation. Mehta's data-driven analysis examines the metamorphosis of the BJP since the 1980s and the subsequent changes that have occurred during Narendra Modi's tenure as Prime Minister.
In order to provide a comprehensive study, the author and his associate have meticulously crafted three data indices: the Mehta-Singh Index (to analyze caste composition), the Narad Index (communication patterns across topics and audiences), and PollNiti (to evaluate historical electoral data and dashboards). The painstaking process of developing these indices has resulted in a cogent counter-argument to existing research on caste. The book offers a glimpse into the inner workings of the BJP, detailing the party's transformation from an urban, male, and upper-caste-dominated organization to one that is more representative of various genders and castes.
Through this work, readers gain insight into the implementation of government welfare schemes and their translation into effective last-mile delivery. By leveraging the JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar, and Mobile), the government has successfully facilitated direct benefits transfer without any leakage. The book also explores the BJP's strategic approaches to garner support and confidence from demographics where it has historically underperformed, such as in the Northeast and among women, and subsequently delivering on its promises.
By analyzing the communication methods employed by the BJP, including speeches, magazines, and social media, the book provides an understanding of how the party disseminates its ideas, the evolution of these ideas over time and during election periods, and the adaptation of the message depending on the target audience. However, the book also highlights the areas where the BJP has faltered, such as providing employment opportunities for India's burgeoning youth population. Given the country's demographic profile, the BJP bears a tremendous responsibility in ensuring that this demographic dividend does not devolve into a demographic disaster.
Finally, the book enumerates the significant challenges faced by the BJP, including external threats, such as China, and internal threats, like increasing religious strife and the shifting caste equations. This well-researched and engaging work sheds light on the inner workings of the BJP and its transformation over the years, providing a valuable resource for anyone interested in Indian politics.
In order to provide a comprehensive study, the author and his associate have meticulously crafted three data indices: the Mehta-Singh Index (to analyze caste composition), the Narad Index (communication patterns across topics and audiences), and PollNiti (to evaluate historical electoral data and dashboards). The painstaking process of developing these indices has resulted in a cogent counter-argument to existing research on caste. The book offers a glimpse into the inner workings of the BJP, detailing the party's transformation from an urban, male, and upper-caste-dominated organization to one that is more representative of various genders and castes.
Through this work, readers gain insight into the implementation of government welfare schemes and their translation into effective last-mile delivery. By leveraging the JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar, and Mobile), the government has successfully facilitated direct benefits transfer without any leakage. The book also explores the BJP's strategic approaches to garner support and confidence from demographics where it has historically underperformed, such as in the Northeast and among women, and subsequently delivering on its promises.
By analyzing the communication methods employed by the BJP, including speeches, magazines, and social media, the book provides an understanding of how the party disseminates its ideas, the evolution of these ideas over time and during election periods, and the adaptation of the message depending on the target audience. However, the book also highlights the areas where the BJP has faltered, such as providing employment opportunities for India's burgeoning youth population. Given the country's demographic profile, the BJP bears a tremendous responsibility in ensuring that this demographic dividend does not devolve into a demographic disaster.
Finally, the book enumerates the significant challenges faced by the BJP, including external threats, such as China, and internal threats, like increasing religious strife and the shifting caste equations. This well-researched and engaging work sheds light on the inner workings of the BJP and its transformation over the years, providing a valuable resource for anyone interested in Indian politics.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 30, 2024
After the most recent elections, Narendra Modi is on track for the third 15-year term in Indian history, matching Indira Ghandi and falling just shy of Nehru. But while many Western observers have focused on Modi's personal story, The New BJP is a more population-oriented book focused on the story of the political party itself - the history, the strategy and the battle tactics that the party used to take over the largest democracy in the world.
To me, the ideology was interesting, but underneath that, the core governing philosophy was clearly deeply rooted in pragmatism - rather than thinking of the BJP as a difference-in-kind from what came before, it's clear from the book that much of the BJP's success was actually the result of a key exogenous factor: the rise of mobile phones in India. With the emergence of the Jio network in 2016, 4G mobile penetration in India grew rapidly to more than 600M (60 crore) subscribers by 2017, directly impacting the ability of the BJP to pivot from broadcasting messages via Instagram and Twitter int a much more read-write relationship represented by WhatsApp. That said, the Ram Temple has been re-consecrated, thus fulfilling the key political goal set forth by the BJP almost 50 years ago when Mookerjee founded it as a spinoff of the RSS itself.
By "closing the loop" - connecting direct cash transfers with completed houses and toilets and sharing photos and messages about completed projects in a hyper-local manner with the population, Modi and the BJP were able to organize a widespread perception that they had shifted from a centrally planned government ripe with corruption towards a government with direct relationships with the Indian people across India, but especially in Upper Pradesh.
This allowed the party to cement its reputation as the representative of the lower-class, lower-caste Indian people - directly competing against Singh and the other Congress party / Ghandi family "globalists" who had modernized upper-class India but left the lower-class behind.
The book is unabashedly pro-Modi; we'll be reading Malevolent Republic next, but it's clear that this book was intended to explain the rise of the BJP using much more rigorous quantitative analysis rather than relying entirely on "vibes-based" analysis. Unlike the CCP in China, the BJP is a successful political party in a multi-party democracy, and I think that for people interested in how political parties should organize in a post-Gurri era, the book gives a good way to think about what a much larger and more engaged party apparatus could look like even in Western democracies. In general, I think it probably painted a too-rosy picture of India, but was likely a good counter-balance to a reflexively anti-Modi bias from Western observers.
To me, the ideology was interesting, but underneath that, the core governing philosophy was clearly deeply rooted in pragmatism - rather than thinking of the BJP as a difference-in-kind from what came before, it's clear from the book that much of the BJP's success was actually the result of a key exogenous factor: the rise of mobile phones in India. With the emergence of the Jio network in 2016, 4G mobile penetration in India grew rapidly to more than 600M (60 crore) subscribers by 2017, directly impacting the ability of the BJP to pivot from broadcasting messages via Instagram and Twitter int a much more read-write relationship represented by WhatsApp. That said, the Ram Temple has been re-consecrated, thus fulfilling the key political goal set forth by the BJP almost 50 years ago when Mookerjee founded it as a spinoff of the RSS itself.
By "closing the loop" - connecting direct cash transfers with completed houses and toilets and sharing photos and messages about completed projects in a hyper-local manner with the population, Modi and the BJP were able to organize a widespread perception that they had shifted from a centrally planned government ripe with corruption towards a government with direct relationships with the Indian people across India, but especially in Upper Pradesh.
This allowed the party to cement its reputation as the representative of the lower-class, lower-caste Indian people - directly competing against Singh and the other Congress party / Ghandi family "globalists" who had modernized upper-class India but left the lower-class behind.
The book is unabashedly pro-Modi; we'll be reading Malevolent Republic next, but it's clear that this book was intended to explain the rise of the BJP using much more rigorous quantitative analysis rather than relying entirely on "vibes-based" analysis. Unlike the CCP in China, the BJP is a successful political party in a multi-party democracy, and I think that for people interested in how political parties should organize in a post-Gurri era, the book gives a good way to think about what a much larger and more engaged party apparatus could look like even in Western democracies. In general, I think it probably painted a too-rosy picture of India, but was likely a good counter-balance to a reflexively anti-Modi bias from Western observers.
February 2, 2023
Clocking in at just under 800 pages, out of which the last 200 are comprehensive notes, appendices and timelines, this book is an exhaustive case study into the rise of BJP. While I may not agree with a lot of the government’s policies and decisions, I was nevertheless impressed by the meticulousness and discipline that went into creating the BJP of today, and that is exactly the point of this book.
The Narad Index and the Mehta-Singh social index are just two examples (out of several that come to mind) that indicate how countless laborious hours were spent by Mehta in combing through election rallies, videos and publications to generate a detailed analysis and several insights. Every claim and assertion is backed by data and analysis. This book takes a clinical and yet an enlightening approach to study the complicated connection of the BJP with a country as diverse and unique as India.
Mehta rightly concludes his book by pointing out how vital it is to understand the BJP and its “differentiated modes of mobilisation”. I echo his hope that this book will be a catalyst for more informed discussions and debates on democracy, politics, technology and the future of our country.
The Narad Index and the Mehta-Singh social index are just two examples (out of several that come to mind) that indicate how countless laborious hours were spent by Mehta in combing through election rallies, videos and publications to generate a detailed analysis and several insights. Every claim and assertion is backed by data and analysis. This book takes a clinical and yet an enlightening approach to study the complicated connection of the BJP with a country as diverse and unique as India.
Mehta rightly concludes his book by pointing out how vital it is to understand the BJP and its “differentiated modes of mobilisation”. I echo his hope that this book will be a catalyst for more informed discussions and debates on democracy, politics, technology and the future of our country.
December 15, 2025
It’s great read for someone who genuinely wants to understand the rise of BJP in India, especially in the last decade. It dives into incredible details, with data driven analysis, of how the party functions as a perfectly well oiled machinery to ensure winning elections, albeit without nefarious means. The combination of on-the-ground understanding of community dynamics, which includes caste matrix too, booth-level activism and targeted welfarism that goes beyond just putting money into the bank accounts, ensures it yields long term political dividend.
The book busts several myths that comes from the left wing journalists, including western media, such as BJP being upper caste party, right-wing party, extension of RSS, majoritarian, misogynistic, North Indian and so on with such precise data.
The book was published in 2022, so a little outdated in the context of BJP’s present situation but it is a great read in terms of understanding how political parties are supposed to function.
Definitely recommended.
The book busts several myths that comes from the left wing journalists, including western media, such as BJP being upper caste party, right-wing party, extension of RSS, majoritarian, misogynistic, North Indian and so on with such precise data.
The book was published in 2022, so a little outdated in the context of BJP’s present situation but it is a great read in terms of understanding how political parties are supposed to function.
Definitely recommended.
November 24, 2022
Very well-written and researched book. Cleared up a lot of the misconceptions and incorrect beliefs I had about this party which explains its current outsize prominence in the Indian context and helped me understand why so many people choose to believe in it despite.... everything. The caricaturized image of the BJP we have is quite inaccurate and completely fails to capture the evolution in the party in the last 20 years. It is this radical evolution that seems to have escaped most academic theorization that explains its current dominance in India.
January 27, 2024
This is a detailed and rigorous account of the rise of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and its prominence in modern Indian politics. The author largely maintains a critical distance from the regime. Some elements of the discussion assume a basic familiarity with Indian society and politics, such that this book is not fully accessible to readers outside India without specialist knowledge.
July 17, 2024
This behemoth of a book is an objective narration of what makes BJP a powerhouse in the 21st century. It provided deep insight into the day to day operations of the Sangh, BJP cadres at the grass root level and backs it with statistical analysis. The author clearly states that this book is not meant to take sides and he never deviates from his promise.
March 17, 2022
A well written analysis of the rise of the BJP. A bit too tedious at times for the reader, given the data driven approach the author has chosen. Nonetheless, all facts of the subject are covered thoroughly.
January 3, 2024
Thought provoking and helped me as get a more nuanced understanding of the BJP as a Diaspora Indian. Overall could use some editing as other reviewers suggest, or perhaps I wasn’t the target audience - still would recommend.
April 1, 2024
Must read for anyone who isinterested in Indian politics.
August 12, 2024
Was really a great book that analysed very well on how BJP has evolved over the years and compared it pretty well to the opposition
I felt this was quite an unbiased stats based read...definitely do check it out
I felt this was quite an unbiased stats based read...definitely do check it out
May 24, 2025
This was good and made me once again appreciate that you can find so much material on India in English. I liked the NE chapter in particular.
December 18, 2022
Rating: 2.5/5
The book was extremely banal. A lot of information appeared to be redundant, lengthening the book unnecessarily. Many of Data Narratives' graphs did not appear to convey information effectively - some of the graphs lacked appropriate controls to compare the data with. Overall, despite providing a good general overview of the BJP's rise, the book's conclusions are unsatisfying.
The book was extremely banal. A lot of information appeared to be redundant, lengthening the book unnecessarily. Many of Data Narratives' graphs did not appear to convey information effectively - some of the graphs lacked appropriate controls to compare the data with. Overall, despite providing a good general overview of the BJP's rise, the book's conclusions are unsatisfying.
August 30, 2022
I'm just gonna usurp other reviewers' words here: A well written analysis of the rise of the BJP. A bit too tedious at times for the reader, given the data driven approach the author has chosen.
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