Negotiating Power and Identity: Party Alliances, Regionalism, and Political Realignments in Arunachal Pradesh

Nyajum Lollen

Negotiating Power and Identity: Party Alliances, Regionalism, and Political Realignments in Arunachal Pradesh

Author(s)	Dr. Nyajum Lollen
Country	India
Abstract	This paper examines the dynamics of alliance politics and party relations in Arunachal Pradesh. The emphasis is on the interaction between national political parties and regional parties. Situated within the broader framework of India’s federal democracy and frontier politics, the study argues that the political trajectory of Arunachal Pradesh has been shaped less by ideological competition and more by leadership-centric mobilisation, strategic accommodation, and persistent alliance instability. Drawing on a qualitative and historical method, the paper analyses the evolution of party politics from the late 1970s to the post-2000 period, focusing on the Indian National Congress, People’s Party of Arunachal Pradesh, Arunachal Congress, and the Bharatiya Janata Party. The findings reveal that the early dominance of the Congress, while electorally decisive, was organisationally shallow, creating structural conditions for fragmentation and regional assertion. Regional parties emerged not as ideologically distinct alternatives but as instruments for negotiating leadership autonomy and political leverage within the federal framework. Alliance politics became a defining feature of the state’s political process, with both the Congress and later the BJP relying on regional and breakaway formations to access power. These alliances, however, were marked by instability, frequent defections, and coalition breakdowns, undermining party institutionalisation and reshaping electoral behaviour. It further demonstrates that regional parties in Arunachal Pradesh have experienced a cyclical pattern of emergence, decline, and conditional revival. In the contemporary context, their relevance lies primarily in their strategic role within alliance negotiations rather than in sustained electoral dominance. Overall, the study highlights how alliance politics in Arunachal Pradesh has normalised a fluid, leadership-driven mode of governance, raising broader questions about democratic stability and party institutionalisation in India’s peripheral and strategically sensitive regions.
Keywords	Alliance Politics, Regional Parties. Leadership-Centric Politics, Electoral Instability, Centre–State Relations
Published In	Volume 8, Issue 1, January-February 2026
Published On	2026-02-06

View / Download PDF File

E-ISSN 2582-2160

doi

CrossRef DOI is assigned to each research paper published in our journal.

IJFMR DOI prefix is
10.36948/ijfmr

Downloads

Research Paper Format Copyright Permission Form and Undertaking Form Cover Page Vol 8 Isu 2 Cover Page Vol 8 Isu 1 Cover Page Vol 7 Isu 6

All research papers published on this website are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, and all rights belong to their respective authors/researchers.

CC-BY-SA

About IJFMR Fees & Payment Current Issue Publication Archive	Submit Research Paper Track Submission Status Publication Guidelines Publication Ethics Peer Review & Plagiarism	Join as a Reviewer Editors & Reviewers Reviewer Referral Program Get Reviewer Membership Certi.	Website/Journal Policies Usage Policy Content Policies Privacy Policy

Contact Us		+91-9687-828-838	editor@ijfmr.com

International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research

A Widely Indexed Open Access Peer Reviewed Multidisciplinary Bi-monthly Scholarly International Journal

Negotiating Power and Identity: Party Alliances, Regionalism, and Political Realignments in Arunachal Pradesh

Share this