The Janata Morcha ("People's Front") was a coalition of Indian political parties formed in 1974 to oppose the government of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Congress (R) party. The coalition was an integral part of the popular movement against the Emergency rule of Indira Gandhi and the direct predecessor of the Janata Party, which defeated the Congress (R) in the 1977 Indian general election to form the first non-Congress government in independent India. [1] It was formed by Jayaprakash Narayan and Morarji Desai, chief of the main opposition Congress (O) party.
For the 1971 Indian general election, the Congress (O), Samyukta Socialist Party and the Bharatiya Jana Sangh had formed a coalition called the "Grand Alliance" to oppose Indira Gandhi and the Congress (R), but failed to have an impact; [2] Indira's Congress (R) won a large majority in the 1971 elections and her popularity increased significantly after India's victory in the war of 1971 against Pakistan. [2] However, Gandhi's subsequent inability to address serious issues such as unemployment, poverty, inflation and shortages eroded her popularity. [2]
The Janata Morcha was formed by Jayaprakash Narayan and Morarji Desai as an alliance of political parties opposed to the Congress (R) and Indira Gandhi. The constituents included the Congress (O), Bharatiya Jana Sangh, Samyukta Socialist Party and the BLD. The Janata Morcha won a surprising victory in the elections held for the Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) of the Indian state of Gujarat on 11 June 1975. [2] [3] The next day, the Allahabad High Court judged Indira Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractices, invalidated her 1971 election victory and barred her from elective office for six years. This led Indira to impose a state of emergency on 26 June 1975. [1] [2] Indira's government used the state of emergency to clamp down on opposition and dissolved the newly elected assembly, preventing the Morcha from forming the government and taking power.
During the emergency, the leaders and activists of the Janata Morcha were imprisoned. After the 1977 elections were called, the constituents of the Janata Morcha formally launched the Janata Party on 18 January 1977, determined to forge a united front of all opposition political parties. The Janata party replicated the success of the Morcha in Gujarat by winning the 1977 elections and forming the first non-Congress government of India. [1]
Jayaprakash Narayan, popularly referred to as JP or Lok Nayak, was an Indian independence activist, theorist, socialist and political leader. He is also known as the "Hero of Quit India Movement" and he is remembered for leading the mid-1970s opposition against Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, for whose overthrow he had called for a "total revolution". His biography, Jayaprakash, was written by his nationalist friend and the writer of Hindi literature, Rambriksh Benipuri. In 1999, he was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in recognition of his social work. Other awards include the Magsaysay award for Public Service in 1965.
Morarji Ranchhodji Desai was an Indian independence activist and served between 1977 and 1979 as the 4th Prime Minister of India and led the government formed by the Janata Party. During his long career in politics, he held many important posts in government such as Chief Minister of Bombay State, Home Minister, Finance Minister and 2nd Deputy Prime Minister of India.
Chaudhary Charan Singh served as the 5th Prime Minister of India between 28 July 1979 and 14 January 1980. Historians and people alike frequently refer to him as the 'champion of India's peasants.'
The Janata Party was a political party that was founded as an amalgam of Indian political parties opposed to the Emergency that was imposed between 1975 to 1977 by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of the Indian National Congress. In the 1977 general election, the party defeated the Congress and Janata leader Morarji Desai became the first non-Congress prime minister in independent modern India's history.
The Indian National Congress (Organisation) or Congress (O) was a political party in India formed when the Congress party split following the expulsion of Indira Gandhi.
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 Indira Gandhi's political opponents were imprisoned and the press was censored. Several other human rights violations were reported from the time, including a mass forced 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.
Krishan Kant was the tenth Vice President of India from 1997 until his death. Previously, he was Governor of Andhra Pradesh from 1990 to 1997. He was a member of Lok Sabha from Chandigarh (1977-1980), and Member of Rajya Sabha from Haryana
Navnirman Andolan was a socio-political movement in 1974 in Gujarat by students and middle-class people against economic crisis and corruption in public life. It is the only successful agitation in the history of post-independence India that resulted in dissolution of an elected government of the state.
Virendra Kumar Sakhlecha was an Indian politician who served as the 10th Chief Minister Of Madhya Pradesh from 18 January 1978 to 19 January 1980. He was a leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He hailed from Mandsaur district.
Raj Narain was an Indian freedom fighter and politician. He won in a famous electoral malpractice case against the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, which led to her disqualification and imposition of Emergency in India in 1975. He defeated Indira Gandhi during the 1977 Lok Sabha elections.
The Bihar Movement was a political movement initiated by students in the Indian state of Bihar in 1974 and led by the veteran Gandhian socialist Jayaprakash Narayan, popularly known as JP, against misrule and corruption in the state government. It later turned against Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's government in the central government. It was also called Sampoorna Kranti and JP Movement.
General elections were held in India to constitute the 5th Lok Sabha on March 1971. This was the fifth election since independence in 1947. The 27 Indian states and union territories were represented by 518 constituencies, each with a single seat. Under the leadership of Indira Gandhi, the Indian National Congress (R) led a campaign which focused on reducing poverty and won a landslide victory, overcoming a split in the party and regaining many of the seats lost in the previous election.
The 1977 Indian general election was held to constitute the 6th Lok Sabha. Polling was held between 16 to 20 March 1977. It was held during the Emergency period, which expired on 21 March 1977, right before the final results were announced.
India held general elections to the 7th Lok Sabha in January 1980. The Janata Party alliance came into power after the elections to the 6th Lok Sabha held in 1977, riding the public anger against the Congress and the Emergency but its position was weak. The loose coalition barely held on to a majority with only 295 seats in the Lok Sabha and never quite had a firm grip on power.
Politics in Odisha takes place within a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic republic, where the Union Government of India exercises sovereign rights with certain powers reserved to the states of India including Odisha. The state has a multi-party system where the two main parties are the centrist and secularist Indian National Congress (INC) and the regional socialist party Biju Janata Dal (BJD).The nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has increased in recent years. The Governor of Odisha is appointed by the Union Government and can, in some circumstances, dismiss the state government.
The sixth legislative assembly election of Tamil Nadu was held on 10 June 1977. All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) won the election defeating its rival Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). M. G. Ramachandran, the AIADMK founder and a leading Tamil film actor, was sworn in as Chief Minister for the first time. The election was a four-cornered contest between the AIADMK, DMK, the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Janata Party. Earlier in 1972, M.G.R had founded the AIADMK following his expulsion from the DMK after differences arose between him and DMK leader M. Karunanidhi. On 31 January 1976, Karunanidhi's government was dismissed by the central government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi citing non-co-operation for MISA and President's rule was imposed on the state. Karunanidhi had been at odds with Indira Gandhi over his opposition to Emergency and allied with Janata Party founded by Jayaprakash Narayan. Meanwhile, M.G.R had developed a close relationship with Indira Gandhi and supported the Emergency. M.G.R remained as Chief Minister until he died in 1987, winning the next two elections held in 1980 and 1984. This election gave concrete proof that Tamil people idolized M.G.R, as he won the State elections in alliance with Indira's Congress, despite the people hating Indira for implementing Emergency. Due to this feat, M.G.R inadvertently became an example for entry of famous actors to enter politics, with a hope that they too may become Chief minister one day. then Telugu superstar N.T.R followed M.G.R's suit in 1983 and won the Andhra Pradesh general Elections to become the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. Since then, no other actor has been able to recreate M.G.R's achievements in electoral Politics.
The Congress for Democracy (CFD) was an Indian political party founded in 1977 by Jagjivan Ram. It was formed after Jagjivan Ram, Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna, and Nandini Satpathy left the Indian National Congress of Indira Gandhi and denounced her rule during the Indian Emergency. The party contested the 1977 Indian general election with the Janata alliance and later merged with it.
The State of Uttar Pradesh v. Raj Narain was a 1975 case heard by the Allahabad High Court that found the Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractices. Ruling on the case that had been filed by the defeated opposition candidate, Raj Narain, Justice Jagmohanlal Sinha invalidated Gandhi's win and barred her from holding elected office for six years. The decision caused a political crisis in India that led to the imposition of a state of emergency by Gandhi's government from 1975 to 1977.
The premiership of Morarji Desai extended from 24 March 1977 to 15 July 1979. In the 1977 Indian general election Morarji Desai led the Janata Party to victory against the Congress party. Upon taking office, Morarji Desai became the first Indian Prime Minister not belonging to the Congress party.
Elections to the seventh Odisha Legislative Assembly were held 1977.