New Political Trends in Uttar Pradesh-The BJP and the Lok Sabha Elections, 1998

The BJP and the Lok Sabha Elections, 1998 Sudha Pai In order to understand the emerging trends in Uttar Pradesh politics, this paper traces the shifts in the party system in the state since the late 1980s, The paper argues that despite the BJP's attempts to moderate its hindutva ideology and style of campaigning, leading to some broadening of its social base, it has not emerged as a broad- based aggregative and dominant party in UP on the lines of the Congress, With the SP and the BSP remaining strong regional parties with distinct bases capable of challenging the BJP, there are structural limitations to the BJP's expansion. As a result, the party system in UP is still in a state of flux.