Yamini Aiyar & Neelanjan Sircar write in Contemporary South Asia journal on how BJP's electoral performance and Modi's popularity have altered the political landscape. Party chief J.P. Nadda has pulled up the state brass for not taking quick action. The opposition’s surrender to Hindutva has only raised the bar for what can polarise voters. Enter NRC and CAB. Analysis using Maharashtra and Haryana assembly election results: This is the first major election since the Lok Sabha elections in May. Before going into the specifics, the BJP is preparing for a third term. The Congress is still reeling from its loss of 2014. The BJP lost five senior leaders in the last year. Swaraj and Jaitley have groomed an entire generation of BJP leaders who are currently holding high positions. While the ruling party seems true to its core commitments of nationalism and Hindutva, its rivals don’t appear to have any ideological anchor anymore. The remarks come ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s scheduled visit to India next week towards boosting bilateral trade tensions. Lt. (retd.) Mohammed Sanaullah's family approached the Gauhati High Court on Wednesday less than 24 hours after he was sent to a detention centre. While the BJP clearly lacks a face, it has a reasonably better middle management than the TMC compared to the 2014 polls. The TMC surely has a challenge ahead. In the previous election, during the Modi wave, India saw its highest ever turnout at 66 percent. Surprisingly, the turnout numbers so far in 2019 have been different.