India, April 13 -- After dominating Hungary's political landscape for over a decade and a half, Viktor Orban conceded defeat in Sunday's parliamentary elections, as a surge led by opposition's Peter Magyar upended the country's politics after 16 years.

However, his loss, as experts say, did not come overnight, but was shaped by a steady erosion of authority, growing discontent of public, and the emergence of a formidable challenger from within his own system.

For 16 years, Orban was both the architect and the face of Hungary's political order. Since returning to power in 2010, he reshaped institutions and governance, creating what he himself described as an "illiberal state" in 2014.

"He managed to build up the political system around ...