Modi at 75 Isn’t Slowing Down — BJP’s Surge Signals 2029 Play

At 75, Narendra Modi was expected to slow down. Instead, he’s driving BJP’s biggest comeback—reshaping India’s political landscape and setting the tone for 2029.

By MANISH ANAND

New Delhi, May 4, 2026 — Last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s retirement plan was a subject of speculation. In less than nine months since he turned 75 years of age, Modi has delivered electoral wins to the kitty of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to suggest that he’s not yet done with the electoral politics. Since September 2025, when Modi hit the milestone of 75, the BJP installed CM from own rank in Bihar, while one for West Bengal is now on the anvil.

Modi had faced blushes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections after the BJP lost its own majority in the Lok Sabha. But the BJP quickly repaired ties with its ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS). Haryana, Maharashtra, and Delhi delivered mandates in favour of the BJP to bring the saffron outfit on the path of a recovery. Bihar too backed the BJP along with the alliance partner, the Janata Dal (United). The 2025 brought rich hauls for the BJP, adding Delhi to its kitty.

In 2026, the BJP gained Bihar for own CM after arranging the exit of Nitish Kumar of the JD (U). In Assembly elections in four states and Puducherry, the BJP’s task was to defend NDA governments in Assam and Puducherry. The BJP defended both the government, and won West Bengal in a stunning victory in which the regional powerhouse, the Trinamool Congress, was routed.

In addition, the BJP has reasons to smile at another regional powerhouse in Tamil Nadu, the DMK, losing to the debutant TVK led by actor-turned-politician Vijay.

Besides strings of poll wins, the BJP within two years of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections is witnessing an implosion in the Opposition camp. The two last surviving regional satraps — TMC and DMK — are now out of the way of the Opposition. While the Congress won Keralam Assembly elections, the Rahul Gandhi-led outfit has been routed convincingly in Assam and West Bengal. That in a way delivers a message that the BJP has already sealed the 2029 poll plot.

Now the BJP heads into a busy poll season in 2027 when Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa, and Himachal Pradesh go into the polls. With the 2026 election verdict buoying the saffron spirits, the Opposition will have its back pushed to the wall to meet the challenges of 2027.

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About The Author

Manish Anand

Manish Anand is a senior journalist with more than two decades of hardcore reporting on beats such as Prime Minister’s Office, Parliament, BJP, Congress, Planning Commission, NITI Aayog, and scores of Union Ministries.

His past has been with The New Indian Express, The Asian Age/Deccan Chronicle, and The Statesman.

For about 15 years, Manish was also a regular commentator and host for talks on AIR on foreign affairs.

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