Except for Karnataka, where it has been in power numerous times, the party has been removing hurdles to its expansion in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had been in opposition for 10 years, began to consider modifying its approach to politics and governing before the 2014 general elections. BJP leaders supported by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh sought to define the narrative and force the opposition to respond. This strategy of setting the narrative and aggressively pursuing it has helped the party become a hegemon in the politically crucial ‘Hindi belt’ and enter the political discourse in regions like Southern India where it has had little electoral success in the past decade. Except for Karnataka, where it has been in power numerous times, the party has been removing hurdles to its expansion in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala. After spotting an opening in Tamil Nadu, the BJP has been enticing voters with development promises. It has used Hindutva to unite castes and invoke regional and national pride.The party's no-holds-barred campaign to blame the Congress-led UPA governments and Tamil Nadu's Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) for the Katchatheevu Island transfer to Sri Lanka is part of its now-established policy of setting the agenda and dominating political discourse. Prime Minister Narendra Modi led this campaign on social media site ‘X’ to discuss the transfer of the 1.6 km-long, 300-m-wide island, criticizing the Congress and DMK. Modi accused the DMK of “double standards” for failing to protect Tamil Nadu's interests. External affairs minister S Jaishankar bolstered the effort by pointing out that Nehru and Gandhi had dismissed the small island. Jaishankar claimed Nehru considered the island “no importance” and subsequent governments did little to protect fisherman. Despite diplomatic advice, the BJP appears unconcerned about slowing down. Former foreign secretary Jaishankar was diplomatically at his best when he avoided queries about whether India will dispute the 1974 and 1976 accords that transferred the island and gave up fishing rights, stating that the case was sub judice. In Tamil Nadu, state party chief K Annamalai was more aggressive. The belligerent former Indian Police Service officer said that the island should be recaptured because the government's ceding to Sri Lanka hurt national interests. Will the controversy help the BJP? Party sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, agree that the issue may not benefit the BJP immediately due to its low ground resonance. It has set the narrative, compelling the opposition to respond, as the party intended.