New Delhi: The AAP’s dramatic rise and the comeback of Lalu Prasad and Nitish Kumar in Bihar marked the first full year of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who analysts say is still going strong though his earlier sheen has worn off.For a politician who seemed to be at the peak of his popularity when 2015 dawned, having led the BJP to a historic win in the general election and later in Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir, Modi suffered the maiden electoral defeat of his career in Delhi in February.It was a personal blow for Modi because the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which swept away the BJP in assembly polls, was led by Arvind Kejriwal, who Modi crushed in the Lok Sabha election in Varanasi in May 2014.Nine months later, Modi suffered the second major jolt — and of a far serious nature — when his personalized campaign failed to help the BJP to defeat JD-U leader Nitish Kumar and RJD chief Lalu Prasad. If the BJP won just three of 70 seats in Delhi, it got 53 of 243 seats in Bihar.
The Bihar outcome led to open dissidence in the BJP, whose four senior leaders – L.K. Advani included – publicly called for a thorough review of the defeat. The statement was seen as an attack on Modi and BJP president Amit Shah, his Man Friday.