BJP's New Regional Power Trio: Sarma, Adhikari, Choudhary

Having emerged from different political traditions, these three leaders have played significant roles in strengthening the BJP's position in their respective states.

Their rise also reflects the BJP's willingness to back leaders seen as capable and politically promising, despite many of them having held secondary roles in their former parties.

In Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma was sworn in on Tuesday for a second consecutive term as chief minister, marking the BJP-led alliance's third straight term in the state. Sarma, who succeeded Sarbananda Sonowal in May 2021, emerged as one of the BJP's key political strategists in the Northeast. Now 57, he began his political journey in Congress, where he built a reputation as a strategist and election manager.

In the 1996 Assam Assembly election, Sarma lost the Jalukbari seat to Asom Gana Parishad leader Bhrigu Kumar Phukan. Since then, he has won the constituency six consecutive times. During the Congress government led by Tarun Gogoi, Sarma handled key portfolios, including agriculture, finance, health, and education.

Sarma joined the BJP in August 2015, citing alleged misgovernance, nepotism within the Congress, and what he described as the party leadership's lack of attention towards Assam's concerns. Sarma quickly established himself as a key political strategist for the BJP in the Northeast. As convener of the North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), he played a central role in bringing regional parties together against Congress in the region.

He played a key role in the BJP's victory in the 2016 Assam election, which brought an end to the Congress party's 15-year rule in the state. He also emerged as an important strategist behind the BJP's electoral gains in Tripura, Manipur, and Arunachal Pradesh. Since taking over as chief minister, Sarma has introduced programmes such as "Mission Basundhara" aimed at streamlining land rights and "Gunotsav" to improve the quality of school education, while also pushing infrastructure expansion, including the establishment of new medical colleges.

In West Bengal, May 9 marked a major political milestone for Suvendu Adhikari, who was sworn in as the state's first BJP chief minister after unseating his former mentor-turned-political rival, Mamata Banerjee.

The 55-year-old Adhikari has remained a central figure in West Bengal politics and is widely known for his leadership role in the 2007 Nandigram movement. The agitation proved to be a turning point in the state's political history, laying the groundwork for Mamata and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) to rise to power.

Adhikari rose from grassroots politics to become one of the BJP's most influential leaders in West Bengal, with victories over Mamata in Nandigram in 2021 and in Bhabanipur in 2026 underscoring his organisational strength and political reach. The Adhikari family continues to wield influence in Purba Medinipur and neighbouring districts. His father, Sisir Adhikari, is a veteran politician and former Union minister, while his brothers, Dibyendu Adhikari and Soumendu Adhikari, are also active in politics.

Adhikari began his political career in the Congress before joining the TMC in 1998. He served both as a Member of Parliament and as a minister in the Mamata cabinet. In December 2020, he joined the BJP due to alleged favouritism and nepotism in the TMC. His exit brought internal tensions within the party into public view, particularly his differences with Mamata's nephew, Abhishek Banerjee.

Much like in West Bengal, the swearing-in of Samrat Choudhary as Bihar chief minister on April 15 marked a historic moment for the BJP, with the party leading the state government for the first time. Choudhary succeeded Nitish Kumar after the Janata Dal (United) leader stepped down to move to the Rajya Sabha. The transition signalled a major political shift in Bihar, with the BJP moving from the role of junior ally to the leading force within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in the state.

Born on November 16, 1968, in Lakhanpur village of Bihar's Munger district, Choudhary comes from a family with a long political background. His father, Shakuni Choudhary, was a six-time MLA and also served as a Member of Parliament, while his mother, Parvati Devi, represented the Tarapur Assembly constituency in Bihar.

Choudhary entered politics in the early 1990s and initially aligned himself with the camp led by Lalu Prasad Yadav. He was elected to the Bihar Assembly from the Parbatta constituency in 2000 on a Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) ticket. Over the years, he served as Bihar's agriculture minister, won the Parbatta seat twice, and later shifted to the BJP, where he emerged as an influential face of the NDA in Bihar.

Three states, three leaders - though their trajectories differ in terms of political origins, styles of leadership, and scale - they reflect aspiration, and the BJP's recognition of leadership in regional representation.

- IANS