The BGA India Team led by Managing Director Ratan Shrivastava, wrote an update to clients on the results of the recently-conducted elections in India’s northeastern states.  

Context

  • The party successfully retained its control in Tripura and Nagaland and secured its place in the ruling coalition in Meghalaya.
  • The party benefited from the goodwill accrued from increased outreach to diverse tribal communities through higher budgetary allocations for development and a focus on last-mile delivery.

Significance

  • The return of BJP-led or supported governments in all eight northeastern states could lead to more effective governance in the region. This includes a more critical role for the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, faster implementation of central government initiatives and accelerated social and economic initiatives, including through the North Eastern Council, the region’s key agency for social and economic development. 
  • The results indicated a lack of a unified opposition against the ruling BJP as multiple opposition parties fought the elections separately without much success. These emerging political trends are expected to benefit the BJP in upcoming state elections later this year and the national general elections in 2024. 

Implications

  • Investors can expect the assembly election results to reinforce political stability in the region and ensure continuity of economic and industrial policies in these states. The mandate across these northeastern states is also likely to strengthen the ruling party’s momentum in state legislative assembly elections later this year across southern and western India.
  • Victories in these smaller northeastern states are likely to have a limited electoral impact on major state legislative assembly elections this year. This includes elections in Karnataka in April-May, followed by Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and others towards the later part of the year.

BGA will continue to keep you updated on developments in India as they occur. If you have any comments or questions, please contact BGA India Managing Director Ratan Shrivastava at ratan@bowergroup.com.

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Managing Director

Ratan is a senior executive and management consulting professional who has a proven track record in government, consulting and industry across India and Southeast Asia, with a wide network across stakeholders. He has been instrumental in developing and implementing growth strategies for both the public and private sector and has led diverse teams to secure new market opportunities. Prior to joining BGA, Ratan was at KPMG India where he helped the integration of the small and medium industry clusters, with the domestic and global aerospace, defense and space supply chains. He also served as an advisor at the Federation of ... Read More