08.2004 - Source: US Department of State

Background information on people, history, political and economic situation ("Background Note: India") [#25734],  [ID 6169]

"HISTORY [...]

On August 15, 1947, India became a dominion within the Commonwealth, with Jawaharlal Nehru as Prime Minister. Enmity between Hindus and Muslims led the British to partition British India, creating East and West Pakistan, where there were Muslim majorities. India became a republic within the Commonwealth after promulgating its Constitution on January 26, 1950.

After independence, the Congress Party, the party of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, ruled India under the influence first of Nehru and then his daughter and grandson, with the exception of two brief periods in the 1970s and 1980s.

Prime Minister Nehru governed the nation until his death in 1964. He was succeeded by Lal Bahadur Shastri, who also died in office. In 1966, power passed to Nehru's daughter, Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister from 1966 to 1977. In 1975, beset with deepening political and economic problems, Mrs. Gandhi declared a state of emergency and suspended many civil liberties. Seeking a mandate at the polls for her policies, she called for elections in 1977, only to be defeated by Moraji Desai, who headed the Janata Party, an amalgam of five opposition parties.

In 1979, Desai's Government crumbled. Charan Singh formed an interim government, which was followed by Mrs. Gandhi's return to power in January 1980. On October 31, 1984, Mrs. Gandhi was assassinated, and her son, Rajiv, was chosen by the Congress (I)--for "Indira"--Party to take her place. His Congress government was plagued with allegations of corruption resulting in an early call for national elections in 1989.

In the 1989 elections Rajiv Gandhi and Congress won more seats than any other single party, but he was unable to form a government with a clear majority. The Janata Dal, a union of opposition parties, then joined with the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the right and the communists on the left to form the government. This loose coalition collapsed in November 1990, and Janata Dal, supported by the Congress (I), came to power for a short period, with Chandra Shekhar as Prime Minister. That alliance also collapsed, resulting in national elections in June 1991.

On May 27, 1991, while campaigning in Tamil Nadu on behalf of Congress (I), Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated, apparently by Tamil extremists from Sri Lanka. In the elections, Congress (I) won 213 parliamentary seats and returned to power at the head of a coalition, under the leadership of P.V. Narasimha Rao. This Congress-led government, which served a full 5-year term, initiated a gradual process of economic liberalization and reform, which opened the Indian economy to global trade and investment. India's domestic politics also took new shape, as the nationalist appeal of the Congress Party gave way to traditional alignments by caste, creed, and ethnicity leading to the founding of a plethora of small, regionally based political parties.

The final months of the Rao-led government in the spring of 1996 were marred by several major political corruption scandals, which contributed to the worst electoral performance by the Congress Party in its history. The Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged from the May 1996 national elections as the single-largest party in the Lok Sabha but without a parliamentary majority. Under Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the subsequent BJP coalition lasted only 13 days. With all political parties wishing to avoid another round of elections, a 14-party coalition led by the Janata Dal formed a government known as the United Front, under the former Chief Minister of Karnataka, H.D. Deve Gowda. His government collapsed after less than a year, when the Congress Party withdrew his support in March 1997. Inder Kumar Gujral replaced Deve Gowda as the consensus choice for Prime Minister at the head of a 16-party United Front coalition.

In November 1997, the Congress Party again withdrew support from the United Front. In new elections in February 1998, the BJP won the largest number of seats in Parliament--182--but fell far short of a majority. On March 20, 1998, the President inaugurated a BJP-led coalition government with Vajpayee again serving as Prime Minister. On May 11 and 13, 1998, this government conducted a series of underground nuclear tests, forcing U.S. President Clinton to impose economic sanctions on India pursuant to the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act.

In April 1999, the BJP-led coalition government fell apart, leading to fresh elections in September. The National Democratic Alliance--a new coalition led by the BJP--gained a majority to form the government with Vajpayee as Prime Minister in October 1999.

The Kargil conflict in 1999 and an attack on the Indian Parliament in December 2001 led to increased tensions with Pakistan. Hindu nationalists have long agitated to build a temple on a disputed site in Ayodhya. In February 2002, a mob of Muslims attacked a train carrying Hindu volunteers returning from Ayodhya to the state of Gujarat, and 57 were burnt alive. Over 900 people were killed and 100,000 left homeless in the resulting anti-Muslim riots throughout the state. This led to accusations that the state government had not done enough to contain the riots, or arrest and prosecute the rioters.

The ruling BJP coalition was defeated in a five-stage election held in April and May of 2004, and a Congress-led coalition took power on May 22."

Document(s): Open document

04.2004 - Source: UK Home Office

Historical developments ("Country Report - April 2004") [#22427],  [ID 6170]

"1996 - 1998
4.1 The Congress (I) Government entered the May 1996 general elections with its morale at a low ebb and many of its senior leaders at odds with the Prime Minister, Narasimha Rao. Breakaway parties had been formed in the north, in Madhya Pradesh and in Tamil Nadu - the last in response to Narasimha Rao's decision to have an electoral alliance with the Tamil regional party, the AIADMK, then ruling the State. Congress won only 139 seats, its poorest ever performance. The BJP emerged as the largest party, improving on its previous performance to win 160 seats but still well short of a majority, even with allies.
4.2 On 15 May 1996 the Indian President called on the BJP's parliamentary leader, Atal Behari Vajpayee, to form a Government, which he did with the support of Shiv Sena and other smaller allies. Given the antagonism felt towards the BJP by the majority of other political parties, Vajpayee resigned on 28 May 1996 in anticipation of his Government's inevitable defeat in a parliamentary vote of confidence.
4.3 The National and Left Fronts merged to form an informal coalition known as the United Front (UF) which comprised a total of 13 parties, with the Janata Dal, the Samajwadi Party, the 2 communist parties and the regional Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Telugu Desam as its major components. With Congress (I) prepared to lend external support, the UF was able to form a Government at the end of May 1996. H.D. Deve Gowda, a former Chief Minister of Karnataka, was selected to lead the UF and the new Government.
4.4 At the end of March 1997 Deve Gowda was faced with a serious political crisis following Congress (I)'s withdrawal of parliamentary support for the UF Government. On 11 April 1997 the Prime Minister resigned following the defeat of the UF Government in a vote of confidence, and he was replaced by Inder Kumar Gujral, the External Affairs Minister and the only person acceptable to all the coalition parties. He was sworn in as Prime Minister on 22 April 1997.
4.5 In November 1997 Congress (I) called for the withdrawal of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party from the Government. The Government refused the request and Congress withdrew its support. Mr Gujral resigned as Prime Minister on 28 November 1997. On 4 December 1997 President Narayanan dissolved the Lok Sabha (the Lower House). Mr Gujral headed an interim Government until the general election was held.

1998 - the present
4.6 The general election was held between 16 February and 7 March 1998. Atal Behari Vajpayee, parliamentary leader of the BJP, was sworn in as Prime Minister on 19 March 1998, thereby ending 2 weeks of feverish political activity following a general election which had left no party with a clear majority in the Lok Sabha.
4.7 India detonated 5 nuclear devices in May 1998, before Pakistan responded with 6 underground nuclear explosions. The tests enjoyed widespread support in India, but they provoked almost universal condemnation from the international community.
4.8 The BJP-led Government survived with the outside support of several regional parties and the participation in Government of several allies whose backing was conditional on narrow and specific agendas. [16] A political crisis arose in April 1999 after the AIADMK party withdrew its support from the Government. India's President asked Prime Minister Vajpayee to seek a vote of confidence. On 17 April 1999 the Government lost a vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha by one vote and after 10 days the President dissolved Parliament and called a general election. The general elections to the 13th Lok Sabha, held between September and October 1999, concluded with a decisive victory for the 24-party National Democratic Alliance (NDA) coalition led by the BJP, which with 296 seats commanded an absolute majority. Overall voter turnout was 60%. Atal Behari Vajpayee, leader of the BJP was sworn in as Prime Minister on 13 October 1999. Although there was a 2.7% swing to Congress (I) nationwide, it went on to suffer its worst ever electoral defeat. In contrast to the 1998 election, the BJP eschewed the rhetoric of sectarian Hinduism, concentrating instead on economic reform and infrastructure projects. In the last phase of the election, violence claimed 41 lives, mostly as a result of attacks by separatist militants in the north eastern States of Assam and Tripura. [...]
4.10 The BJP and its allies won 296 seats, Congress and its allies 134 seats, and the others accounted for 107 seats. [...]
4.12 According to a BBC news report dated 14 May 2001, in May 2001, India's main opposition Congress (I) party emerged victorious after elections in five key States across the country. Congress (I) swept to power in Kerala, Assam and Pondicherry, while a key ally took the southern State of Tamil Nadu. India's communists also won a record sixth term in West Bengal, continuing their reign as the world's longest serving elected communist administration. The results were being seen as a major blow for Prime Minister Vajpayee whose BJP coalition partners did not win anywhere, although the BJP was not a key player in the five States. In Tamil Nadu, the AIADMK alliance, led by the former film star Jayalalitha, won a resounding victory over the BJP's key Government coalition partner, the DMK.
4.13 Elections to four State assemblies were held on 13-21 February 2002, with the BJP suffering serious defeats. In the key northern State of Uttar Pradesh (India’s most populous, with a population of 166 million), the BJP lost control, coming second with 107 seats to the socialist Samajwadi Party (SP) with 146 seats. [5j] President’s rule was imposed on 8 March 2002 in Uttar Pradesh, and the recently elected 403-seat State assembly suspended, as no party had been able to assemble a coalition to ensure a ruling majority. [5k] The political stalemate was resolved on 3 May 2002 when Mayawati, leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), was sworn in as chief minister heading a 19- member Cabinet that included 7 BJP ministers. The BJP lost the new northern State of Uttaranchal and the north western State of Punjab to Congress, which was returning to power in the latter after 5 years. The resurgent Congress Party was now in Government in 14 States. The newly formed Secular Progressive Front (SFP) took power in Manipur with 35 seats in the 60-member assembly.
4.14 According to a BBC news report dated 25 July 2002, in July 2002 the eminent scientist Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was sworn in as India's 12th President, replacing K.R. Narayanan. He was the retired architect of India's missile programme. As a Muslim, correspondents felt that this was an important signal at a time when the country was still recovering from the [Hindu-Muslim] Gujarat riots.
4.15 According to a BBC report dated 16 December 2002, in December 2002 the BJP won in State elections in Gujarat, increasing its majority in the 182-seat assembly by winning 126 seats. The scale of the victory surprised some observers as the BJP's popularity had been in decline.
4.16 According to the BBC in a report dated 4 March 2003, in State elections in February 2003, the Congress Party won a big victory over the BJP in Himachal Pradesh. In Meghalaya, Congress were to head a coalition with three regional parties and some independent legislators. A coalition of left-wing parties was triumphant in Tripura, while in Nagaland, the Democratic Alliance of Nagaland was invited to form a Government.
4.17 India’s Hindu-nationalist BJP celebrated sweeping election wins in three states held by the Congress party, as reported by BBC news on 5 December 2003. Keesings news Digest for December 2003 reported that the BJP secured administrations in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh giving rise to speculation that Prime Minister Vajpayee would bring forward the date of the general elections due in October 2004.
4.18 As reported by the BBC news on 1 March 2004, early elections were called by Prime Minister Atal Bahari Vajpayee and voting held over 4 days starting on 20 April and ending on 10 May, with counting taking place on 13 May. Ballots were cast on electronic voting machines for the first time with 675 million eligible to vote."

Document(s): Open document

09.1995 - Source: US Library of Congress

India - A Country Study [ID 6171]

Document(s): Open document