New Delhi: ‘Excitement’ is high for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as Bihar is all set to have its own Chief Minister from the saffron party. Samrat Chaudhary was elected leader of the NDA legislature party, paving the way for him to become the first BJP CM of Bihar. And with this, the BJP has once again given a masterclass on “how to form alliances”.Choudhary, who is expected to take oath on April 15, takes over the top post from Nitish Kumar, who resigned the day earlier. This is certainly a high moment for the BJP, which is trying to keep the alliance running smoothly and yet has the upper hand. This announcement also seems like a repeat of the incident in Maharashtra when Devendra Fadnavis was reinstated as the Chief Minister of the state.

For most of the 2000s, the BJP was the silent partner in Bihar, drawing strength from Nitish Kumar’s credibility and caste alliance. In 2005 and again in 2010, it was Nitish who led from the front, with JDU consistently getting more seats than the BJP.However, this balance began to break down in 2014. Nitish’s decision to walk out of NDA after not making Narendra Modi the Prime Ministerial candidate backfired badly. Fighting separately, JDU was reduced to only 2 Lok Sabha seats and Nitish Kumar resigned from the post of CM, taking moral responsibility.In the 2015 assembly elections, the BJP had the largest vote share of 25% and 53 seats, but still fell short of power as the Grand Alliance (RJD – 80; JD(U) – 71) formed a strong social alliance. When Nitish returned to NDA in 2017, BJP was no longer the same player as before. By 2020, it had clearly taken the lead within the alliance, and won significantly more seats than the JD(U). The party got 74 seats and JDU got 43 seats. Although Nitish remained the CM, the equations within the alliance had changed.By 2025, BJP had completely changed the script. NDA had contested the assembly elections by making Nitish Kumar the CM face. However, with 89 seats the BJP once again emerged as the bigger partner compared to the JD(U) which got 85 seats. While Nitish Kumar remained the CM, the BJP took control of key departments like Home. And finally within a year, Bihar managed to give its first BJP CM with Samrat Chaudhary.

Before Bihar, it was Maharashtra where the BJP had implemented a similar formula. Here, the BJP showed how it could remodel the alliance from within, turn partners into dependents and gain key control without breaking the alliance.There came a time when Devendra Fadnavis had to step down due to the separation of Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and joining hands with BJP and Eknath Shinde was made the CM. However, in the 2024 assembly elections, the BJP emerged as the largest party in the ruling grand alliance with 132 seats out of 288. Backed by strong numbers, the BJP insisted on a leadership change and on December 5, 2024, Fadnavis took oath as CM, with Shinde moving into the role of deputy CM.Once back in power, the BJP moved towards centralizing power. Key departments like Home, Finance and Law remained with the CMO, reducing the space to operate for both Shinde and Ajit Pawar, who had also been the Deputy CM. The alliance remained intact, but its internal balance changed decisively. After the death of Ajit Pawar, his wife Sunetra Pawar was given her post in the Maharashtra Cabinet. The electoral strength of BJP has further strengthened its position. In the January 2026 municipal elections, it performed strongly in urban centres, including Mumbai.In both Bihar and Maharashtra, the rise of the BJP within the alliance has shown how the alliance can work without breaking it. By expanding its own voter base and reducing space for its allies, the BJP has shown that alliances can be the path to dominance, not compromise.