Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagging off two Vande Bharat Express trains from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra railway station to Srinagar, in Jammu and Kashmir on June 06, 2025.
New Delhi: The first year of Narendra Modi’s third term as Prime Minister has been a political rollercoaster, dishing out a heady mix of bold moves, coalition jugglery, and a generous dollop of nationalist fervour that’s kept the Opposition scrambling like a chaiwallah during a monsoon rush.
Modi 3.0: Still the Boss, No Toss!
Modi 3.0, as it’s being dubbed, has navigated the choppy waters of a trimmed Lok Sabha tally, turned state elections into a victory feast, and served up policies with the finesse of a master chef tossing a perfectly spiced biryani. From the rugged terrains of Jammu and Kashmir to the bustling assemblies of Haryana, Maharashtra, and Delhi, the Modi government has played its cards with the swagger of a Bollywood hero, leaving detractors gasping and allies grinning ear to ear.
The year kicked off with a grim reminder of the challenges in Jammu and Kashmir. On June 9, 2024, as Modi took oath for his third term, terrorists attacked a bus carrying pilgrims in the Valley—a brazen jab at the government’s resolve to restore normalcy in the state-turned-Union Territory. But the Centre didn’t blink. Sticking to its guns, it pulled off a historic feat: the first assembly elections in Jammu & Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. Held in September-October 2024, these polls were a masterclass in grit and logistics, unfolding peacefully despite the shadow of cross-border terror. The Bharatiya Janata Party didn’t sweep the Valley but dominated Jammu, bagging 29 of the 90 seats, while the National Conference clinched 42 to form the government. The Congress, with a measly six seats, was left wondering where its game plan went for a toss, its dreams of a Kashmir comeback fading faster than a summer ice goal.
NDA’s Power Play: Modi Rules the Day!
The 2024 Lok Sabha elections had tossed a curveball at the BJP, with its tally dipping from 302 to 240 seats, forcing Modi to lean on coalition partners like a street vendor balancing a towering stack of pani puris. For the first time since 2014, the National Democratic Alliance’s survival hinged on allies like Janata Dal (United) and the Telugu Desam Party. Yet, Modi 3.0 didn’t just survive—it thrived. The government spun its electoral setback into a narrative of resilience, banking on its trademark nationalism and an image of unyielding strength.
The Opposition, meanwhile, floundered like a fish out of water, unable to craft a counter-narrative that didn’t sound like a damp squib. If the Lok Sabha results were a speed bump, the BJP turned state elections into a victory feast. In Haryana, after a lacklustre five out of 10 Lok Sabha seats in June 2024, the BJP roared back in October, clinching 48 seats in the 90-seat assembly. Maharashtra was the real showstopper—132 seats for the BJP alone in the 288-seat assembly, with the Mahayuti alliance gobbling up a jaw-dropping 235. Delhi, the Aam Aadmi Party’s fortress for a decade, fell to the BJP in February 2025, with 48 seats in the 70-seat assembly, ending 27 years of exile in the capital. The only sour note? Jharkhand, where the JMM-Congress alliance edged out the BJP, which settled for 21 seats against JMM’s 31. But even this loss couldn’t dim the BJP’s shine, as it kept the political narrative firmly in its grip, moving the chess pieces with the precision of a grandmaster.
From Kashmir to Census: BJP’s Big Bash!
Enter Operation Sindoor, the BJP’s trump card that sent nationalist fervour soaring like a Diwali rocket. This military triumph wasn’t just about flexing muscle—it was a political masterstroke that painted the Opposition into a corner tighter than a Mumbai local during rush hour. The Congress, in particular, was left tongue-tied, unable to craft a response that didn’t sound like a deflated balloon at a festive mela. Congress leaders like Shashi Tharoor, Salman Khurshid, alongside Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s Kanimozhi Karunanidhi and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen’s Asaduddin Owaisi, joined all-party delegations to defend India’s actions abroad, leaving the Congress high command red-faced. Tharoor’s eloquent defence of Operation Sindoor earned him brickbats from his own party, exposing its muddled messaging. The Congress tried to jab, accusing the government of capitulating to international pressure for a ceasefire, but this fell flat against the overwhelming national consensus that hailed Operation Sindoor as a thumping success, redefining India’s response to terrorism. The BJP, with its clear, resonant narrative, rode the wave, painting the Opposition as out-of-touch naysayers who couldn’t tell a patriotic high from a political low.
Policy-wise, Modi 3.0 didn’t just play the nationalism card—it dished out reforms with purpose. In April, Parliament passed the Wakf (Amendment) Act, 2025, aiming to bring transparency and justice to Muslim community matters, echoing the 2019 triple talaq ban. Though now tangled in Supreme Court battles, the move underscored the BJP’s ideological consistency. Then came the push for simultaneous elections, a Modi pet project, with crucial Bills introduced to sync Lok Sabha and state polls. In a plot twist worthy of a Bollywood thriller, the government flipped the script on the Opposition by greenlighting a caste census for the next count. Influenced by upcoming Bihar polls, pressure from JD(U), and the Opposition’s relentless prodding, this move left Congress and Rahul Gandhi flat-footed. The BJP cheekily accused past Congress regimes of sidelining Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and shelving the Mandal Commission in the 1980s, turning the caste plank into a political boomerang that left the Opposition reeling.
Modi’s Masala Mix: Nationalism & Naxal Wins
The government’s iron fist against Naxalism has been a standout, with the Home Ministry vowing to wipe out left-wing extremism by March 31, 2026. Security forces delivered, neutralising 220 Naxals in Chhattisgarh alone since January 2025—compared to 219 in all of 2024 and 53 in 2023. Welfare schemes got a turbo boost too. The Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY now covers all Indians above 70, regardless of income, while the PM Awas Yojana greenlit two crore more houses. Rural roads under PM Gram Sadak Yojana will connect 25,000 new villages, and the Digital Agriculture Mission, backed by ₹2,817 crore, promises a tech-driven farming revolution with Digital Public Infrastructure and the Digital General Crop Estimation Survey. India’s rise as the fourth-largest economy is a feather in Modi’s cap, though low per capita GDP and the looming spectre of Donald Trump’s tariffs hint at choppy waters ahead.
Congress Cries ‘Jumla’, BJP Says ‘Humla’!
The Congress, desperate to land a punch, released a document titled Ek Aur Baar, Jumla Sarkar, accusing the BJP of peddling lies and fostering an environment of hatred and fear. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge went all guns blazing, claiming Modi’s 11 years have dealt a “serious blow” to democracy, the economy, and the social fabric, with the RSS-BJP exploiting marginalised communities and scribbling “the ink of dictatorship on every page of the Constitution.” Rahul Gandhi, the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition, joined the fray, slamming the government for dodging accountability and selling “2047 dreams” while ignoring the ground realities of 2025. But these jibes landed like a deflated balloon at a festive mela. The Congress’s inability to counter Modi’s narrative—be it on Operation Sindoor, the caste census, or national security—has left it looking like a team that showed up to a T20 match with a Test cricket mindset, confused and outpaced.
As Modi 3.0 blows out its first candle, it’s clear the PM is still the ringmaster of India’s political circus. The BJP’s tightrope walk through coalition compulsions, electoral setbacks, and policy battles has only strengthened its grip. The Opposition, meanwhile, is stuck in a loop, unable to find a narrative that resonates with the masses. With nationalism, welfare, and tactical brilliance, Modi 3.0 is serving up a governance thali that’s tough to resist. Whether it’s taming terror in Kashmir, crushing Naxals, or outsmarting rivals on caste, the BJP’s recipe is clear: a pinch of ideology, a dollop of strategy, and a whole lot of desi swagger.
