2017 has been a good year for the BJP with resounding victories in several states. In the year gone by, BJP came to power in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.
Himachal Pradesh elections: BJP returned to power in Himachal Pradesh winning 44 seats in the 68 seat assembly. However, its CM candidate and party veteran Prem Kumar Dhumal lost the polls.
Jairam Thakur, a five-time BJP legislator, was sworn-in as the 14th Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.
Jairam Thakur took oath in the presence of PM Narendra Modi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP president Amit Shah.
Gujarat elections: BJP came to power for the sixth time in Gujarat in 2017. While the party had predicted a win by over 150 seats, it bagged 99 seats in the final result.
Rahul Gandhi led the Congress campaign in Gujarat and visited several temples in the run up to the elections. The party bagged 77 seats in the 182-Assembly.
Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani, Patidar leader Hardik Patel and OBC leader Alpesh Thakor made headlines this year in 2017. Jignesh won from Vadgam constituency in Gujarat where he stood as an independent candidate.
Manipur elections: In Manipur, BJP emerged as the second largest party with 28 seats in the 60-member assembly against Congress which bagged 31 MLAs. However, the Congress couldn’t get the support of 31 MLAs and BJP formed its government in the state.
N Biren Singh became the first-ever BJP chief minister of Manipur.
Irom Sharmila, the iconic rights crusader fought the Manipur polls. However, the 44-year-old lost badly against three-time chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh in Manipur's Thoubal constituency and got merely 90 votes.
Uttarakhand elections: The BJP stormed back to power in Uttarakhand, winning the state by a massive majority.
BJP bagged 56 out of 70 seats reducing Congress to just 11 seats. It was for the first time in the 16-year history of Uttarakhand that a party emerged with an impressive tally like that recorded by the BJP.
BJP's Trivendra Singh Rawat took oath as the CM in Uttarakhand. Rawat has been a former full-time member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He was also the Agriculture Minister in the previous BJP government in Uttarakhand in 2000.
Goa elections: BJP came second in the 40-member Goa assembly winning 13 seats, while the Congress won 17 seats. However, BJP managed to stake claim to form the government before Congress.
Manohar Parrikar gave up his post as the Defence Minister to take back the charge of the state in Goa.
The AAP went all out campaigning in Goa but could not win even a single constituency in the state despite having fought on 39 seats.
Uttar Pradesh elections: The BJP won back Uttar Pradesh securing a landslide victory in the Assembly elections.
In a move that surprised many, 44-year-old Yogi Adityanath was elected as the Uttar Pradesh CM. A five-term MP from Gorakhpur, Adityanath has been a controversial mascot of hardline Hindutva.
The BJP returned to power after a gap of 15 years, decimated the ruling SP, its alliance partner Congress and Mayawati’s BSP in UP.