The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday appointed party MP Baijayant Jay Panda as its election incharge for next year's assembly polls in Assam. Additionally, the party also appointed Jammu and Kashmir MLA Sunil Kumar Sharma and former union minister Darshana Ben Jardosh as co-incharge for the 2026 Assam elections.
A five-time MP from Odisha, 61-year-old Panda is currently serving as the party's national vice president and spokesperson. BJP's move to appoint him as Assam incharge comes following the party's success in the 2024 Delhi assembly elections, where Panda had played a key role.
Back then, Panda was named BJP's incharge for Delhi polls and the saffron party returned to power in the national capital after 27 years, winning 48 out of 70 seats. It said Panda had operated quietly behind the scene and prepared BJP's poll campaign which focused on pointing out Aam Aadmi Party's shortcomings in the national capital.
Following party's victory, Panda had also lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said that the Delhiites want development. "Now the double-engine government is in place here. Conflict-free governance will be there," he had said.
Interestingly, Panda was also BJP's incharge for 2020 Delhi elections, but the party had to face a drubbing back then after it managed to win just eight seats.
Panda's success in Assam
Panda, a former Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader, was also the BJP's incharge for 2021 elections in Assam, when the saffron party had retained power in the state for a second consecutive term after winning 60 seats in the 126-member Legislative Assembly. Even then, it is said the veteran leader played a key, regularly interacting with party workers and galvanising support for the BJP.
Setback in Uttar Pradesh
Considering his success in 2021 Assam polls, the BJP also appointed him as its election incharge in Uttar Pradesh for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. However, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) had suffered a setback in Uttar Pradesh in the 2024 general elections, where it won just 33 out of the 80 seats. Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party had won 37 seats, while the Congress bagged six constituencies back then.
There were multiple factor's for BJP's setback in Uttar Pradesh, but many political pundits credits Yadav's PDA formula for the India bloc's success in the state which sends the highest number of MPs to the Lok Sabha.
Panda, a former BJD leader
Panda, who is a graduate from the Michigan Technological University, is a former BJD leader. He had joined the saffron party in 2019 after the BJD accused him of 'anti-party activities', who rose to prominence quickly in the BJP. Notably, Panda has also been a five-time MP from Odisha.
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