Indian general election, 1977

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Indian general election, 1977

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  1971 16–20 March 1977 [1] 1980  

All 542 seats in the Lok Sabha
272 seats were needed for a majority

 First partySecond party
  Morarji Desai portrait.jpg Indira Gandhi 1977.jpg
Leader Morarji Desai Indira Gandhi
Party Janata Party INC
Alliance Janata alliance INC+
Leader's seat Surat Rae Bareli
(lost)
Seats won345189
Seat changeIncrease2.svg233Decrease2.svg217
Percentage51.89%40.98%
SwingIncrease2.svg27.55%Decrease2.svg2.7%

Wahlergebnisse Indien 1977.svg


Prime Minister before election

Indira Gandhi
INC(I)

Subsequent Prime Minister

Morarji Desai
Janata Party

In a major turn of events, the ruling Congress lost control of India for the first time in independent India in the Indian general election, 1977. The hastily formed Janata alliance of parties, opposed to the ruling Congress party, won 298 seats. Morarji Desai was chosen as the leader of the alliance in the newly formed parliament and thus became India's first non-Congress Prime Minister on 24 March. The Congress lost nearly 200 seats. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her powerful son Sanjay Gandhi both lost their seats.

Indira Gandhi Indian Prime Minister

Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi, was an Indian politician, stateswoman and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was the first and, to date, the only female Prime Minister of India. Indira Gandhi was the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India. She served as Prime Minister from January 1966 to March 1977 and again from January 1980 until her assassination in October 1984, making her the second longest-serving Indian Prime Minister, after her father.

Sanjay Gandhi Indian politician

Sanjay Gandhi was an Indian politician and the son of Indira Gandhi. He was a family member of the Nehru-Gandhi family. During his lifetime he was widely expected to succeed his mother as head of the Indian National Congress, but following his early death in a plane crash his elder brother Rajiv became their mother's political heir, and succeeded her as Prime Minister of India after her assassination. Sanjay's widow Maneka Gandhi and son Varun Gandhi are leading politicians in the BJP.

Contents

The election came after the end of The Emergency that Prime Minister Gandhi had imposed in 1975; it effectively suspended democracy, suppressed the opposition, and took control of the media with authoritarian measures. The opposition called for a restoration of democracy and Indians saw the election results as a repudiation of the Emergency. [2]

The Emergency (India) 21-month period in the history of India when PM Indira Gandi assumed extraordinary powers

In India, "the Emergency" refers to a 21-month period from 1975 to 1977 when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had a state of emergency declared across the country. Officially issued by President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed under Article 352 of the Constitution because of the prevailing "internal disturbance", the Emergency was in effect from 25 June 1975 until its withdrawal on 21 March 1977. The order bestowed upon the Prime Minister the authority to rule by decree, allowing elections to be suspended and civil liberties to be curbed. For much of the Emergency, most of Gandhi's political opponents were imprisoned and the press was censored. Several other human rights violations were reported from the time, including a forced mass-sterilization campaign spearheaded by Sanjay Gandhi, the Prime Minister's son. The Emergency is one of the most controversial periods of independent India's history.

Background

India held general elections to the 6th Lok Sabha. This sixth general elections, which were conducted for 542 seats from 542 constituencies, represented 27 Indian states and union territories. [3] These 542 constituencies remained same until Indian general elections, 2004 for the 14th Lok Sabha.

The Lok Sabha is the lower house in the Parliament of India. The 6th Lok Sabha, which ran from 23 March 1977 to 22 August 1979 was elected in February and March 1977.11 sitting members from Rajya Sabha were elected to 6th Lok Sabha after the Indian general election, 1971.

Lok Sabha Lower house of the Parliament of India

The Lok Sabha is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, and they hold their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the President on the advice of the council of ministers. The house meets in the Lok Sabha Chambers of the Sansad Bhavan in New Delhi.

The 14th Lok Sabha was convened after the Indian general election, 2004 held in four phases during 20 April – 10 May 2004, which led to the formation of first Manmohan Singh ministry (2004–2009). Indian National Congress lead United Progressive Alliance won 62 more seats than previous 13th Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha is the lower house in the Parliament of India. 8 sitting members from Rajya Sabha, the Upper House of Indian Parliament, were elected to 14th Lok Sabha after the Indian general election, 2004.

The Emergency declared by the Indira Gandhi led Congress government was the core issue in the 1977 elections. Civil liberties were suspended during the national emergency from 25 June 1975 to 21 March 1977 and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi assumed vast powers.

Gandhi had become extremely unpopular for her decision and paid for it during the elections. Mrs. Gandhi, on 23 January, called for fresh elections and released all political prisoners. Four Opposition parties, the Congress (Organisation), the Jan Sangh, the Bharatiya Lok Dal and the Socialist Party, decided to fight the elections under a single banner called the Janata alliance. The alliance used the symbol allocated to Bhartiya Lok dal as their symbol on the ballot papers.The votes were cast from 16 to 19 March. The counting of votes started on 20-March and the results started coming in from that day's evening.

Political prisoner someone imprisoned because they have opposed or criticized the government responsible for their imprisonment

A political prisoner is someone imprisoned because they have opposed or criticized the government responsible for their imprisonment.

The Janata alliance reminded voters of the excesses and human rights violations during the Emergency, like compulsory sterilisation and imprisonment of political leaders. The Janata campaign said the elections would decide whether India would have "democracy or dictatorship." The Congress looked jittery. Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Babu Jagjivan Ram quit the party in the first week of February; other notable Congress stalwarts who crossed the floor with Jagjivan Ram before the election were Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna and Nandini Satpathy.

Jagjivan Ram Indian independence activist and politician

Jagjivan Ram, known popularly as Babuji, was an Indian independence activist and politician from Bihar. He was instrumental in the foundation of the All-India Depressed Classes League, an organisation dedicated to attaining equality for untouchables, in 1935 and was elected to Bihar Legislative Assembly in 1937, after which he organised the rural labour movement.

Nandini Satpathy politician from Odisha, India

Nandini Satpathy was an Indian politician and author. She was the Chief Minister of Odisha from June 1972 to December 1976.

Voter behaviour

The elections in the largest state Uttar Pradesh, historically a Congress stronghold, turned against Mrs. Gandhi. Dhanagare says the structural reasons included the emergence of a strong and united opposition, disunity and weariness within the Congress, an effective opposition and the failure of Mrs. Gandhi in controlling the mass media, which was under censorship during the Emergency. The structural factors allowed voters to express their grievances, notably their resentment of the emergency and its authoritarian and repressive policies. One grievance often mentioned was the 'Nasbandi' (vasectomy) campaign in rural areas. The middle class also emphasised on the curbing of freedom of speech throughout the country. [4] Meanwhile, Congress hit an all-time low in West Bengal, according to the Gangulys, because of poor discipline and factionalism among Congress activists as well as numerous defections that weakened the party. Opponents emphasised the issues of corruption within the Congress and appealed to a deep desire by the voters for fresh leadership. [5] The Congress, however, did well in Southern Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. The results were mixed in the Western states of Maharashtra and Gujarat, however, the Janata Front won all the seats in Mumbai.

Results

Results by alliance

Source: Keesings [6]

e    d  Summary of the 1977 March Lok Sabha election results of India, using alliances under Morarji Government from 1977-79
Sources:
AlliancesPartySeats wonChangePopular votes %
Janata Alliance
Seats: 345
Seat Change: +233
Popular vote %: 51.89
Janata Party / Congress for Democracy 298+24543.17
Communist Party of India (Marxist) 22-34.30
Shiromani Akali Dal 9+81.26
Peasants and Workers Party of India 50.55
Revolutionary Socialist Party 3+2n/a
All India Forward Bloc 3+20.34
Republican Party of India (Khobragade) 2+10.51
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 1-221.76
Independents 2
Congress Alliance
Seats: 189
Seat Change: -217
Popular Vote %: 40.98
Indian National Congress (Indira) 153−19734.52
Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 192.9
Communist Party of India 7-162.82
Jammu & Kashmir National Conference 20.26
Indian Union Muslim League 2-20.3
Kerala Congress 2-10.18
Revolutionary Socialist Party (breakaway)1-1
Independents 2
Others
Seats: 19
Others19

Results by Party

Lok Sabha elections 1977
Electoral participation: 60.49%
%Won
(total 545)
Janata Party JP41.32295
Communist Party of India CPI2.827
Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI(M)4.2922
Indian National Congress (Indira) INC(I)34.52154
Congress For Democracy (Jagjivan Ram) CFD (with Janata Party)5.2813
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam AIADMK2.918
All India Forward Bloc AIFB0.342
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam DMK1.762
Indian Union Muslim League IUML0.32
Jammu & Kashmir National Conference NC0.262
Kerala Congress KC0.181
Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MGP0.061
Manipur Peoples Party MPP0.060
Muslim League (Opposition) ML(O)0.170
Peasants and Workers Party of India PWPI0.555
Revolutionary Socialist Party RSP0.454
Shiromani Akali Dal SAD1.269
United Democratic Front UDF0.071
Vishal Haryana VH0.11
Jharkhand Party JP0.071
Republican Party of India (Khobragade) RPI(K)0.512
Independents5.59
Nominated Anglo-Indians 2

Results by State

(There is only partial data in this section to begin with. It will be completed by and by, as time permits.)
Andhra Pradesh: Total: 42. Congress: 40 or 41 out of 42, Janata Party: 1
Bihar: Janata Party + Allies: 54 out of 54. Congress: Zero
Delhi. Janata Party: 7 out of 7.
Gujarat. Total: 26. Janata Party: 20, Congress: 6
Madhya Pradesh. Total: 40. Janata: 37, RPK: 1, Congress: 1 (Chhindwara), Ind: 1 (Madhavrao Scindia from Guna)
Maharashtra. Total: 48. Janata Party + Allies (CPM, PWP, et al.): 28/48, Congress: 20
Orissa. Total: 21. Janata Party + CPM: 15+1, Congress: 4
Punjab: Akali Dal + Janata + Alliance: 13 out of 13
Rajasthan. Janata: 24/25, Congress: 1.
Uttar Pradesh: Janata Party + Allies: 85 out of 85. Congress: Zero
West Bengal. Janata Alliance: 38/42 (Janata: 15, CPM: 17, Forward Block: 3, RSP: 3), Congress: 3, Ind: 1

See also

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References

  1. http://www.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/arc/INDIA_1977_E.PDF
  2. M.R. Masani, "India's Second Revolution," Asian Affairs (1977) 5#1 pp 19–38.
  3. "General Election of India 1977, 6th Lok Sabha" (PDF). Election Commission of India. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
  4. D.N. Dhanagare, "Sixth Lok Sabha Election in Uttar Pradesh – 1977: The End of the Congress Hegemony," Political Science Review (1979) 18#1 pp 28–51
  5. Mira Ganguly and Bangendu Ganguly, "Lok Sabha Election, 1977: The West Bengal Scene," Political Science Review (1979) 18#3 pp 28–53
  6. "Janata Party Victory in Lok Sabha Elections - Emergency lifted - Cabinet formed by Mr Desai - Dissolution of Nine State Assemblies - Merger of Janata Party and Congress for Democracy - Developments in States - Relations with Soviet Union and China | Keesing's World News Archives". Keesings.com. Retrieved 18 August 2014.

Further reading