Politics of India works within the framework of the country's Constitution. India is a parliamentary secular democratic republic in which the president of India is the head of state & first citizen of India and the Prime Minister of India is the head of government. It is based on the federal structure of government, although the word is not used in the Constitution itself. India follows the dual polity system, i.e. federal in nature, that consists of the central authority at the centre and states at the periphery. The Constitution defines the organizational powers and limitations of both central and state governments; it is well recognised, fluid and considered supreme, i.e. the laws of the nation must conform to it. India is officially declared a secular and socialist state as per the Constitution.
Haradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda is an Indian politician who served as the prime minister of India from 1 June 1996 to 21 April 1997. He was previously the 14th Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1994 to 1996. He presently is a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha representing Karnataka. He is the national president of the Janata Dal (Secular) party. Born in a farming family, he joined the Indian National Congress party in 1953, and remained a member until 1962. He was imprisoned during the Emergency. He became President of the state unit of Janata Dal in 1994, and was considered to be a driving force in the party's victory in Karnataka. He served as the 8th Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1994 to 1996. In the 1996 general elections, no party won enough seats to form a government. When the United Front, a coalition of regional parties, formed the central government with the support of the Congress, Deve Gowda was unexpectedly chosen to head the government after V. P. Singh and Jyoti Basu declined the post and he was elected Prime Minister. During his tenure as prime minister, he also served as Home Minister for some time. His prime ministerial tenure lasted for less than a year. After his prime ministerial tenure, he was elected to the 12th (1998), 14th (2004), 15th, and 16th Lok Sabha, as Member of Parliament for the Hassan Lok Sabha constituency. He lost Lok Sabha elections in 2019 from Tumkuru but has been elected to Rajya Sabha since.
The Samajwadi Party is a socialist political party in India. It was founded on 4 October 1992 by former Janata Dal politician Mulayam Singh Yadav and is headquartered in New Delhi. The Samajwadi Party is currently led by former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav. As of 2024, it is currently the third-largest political party in India, and the largest party in Uttar Pradesh.
Somanahalli Mallaiah Krishna is an Indian politician who served as Minister of External Affairs of India from 2009 to October 2012. He was the 10th Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1999 to 2004 and the 19th Governor of Maharashtra from 2004 to 2008. SM Krishna had served as the Speaker of the Karnataka Vidhan Sabha from December 1989 to January 1993. He was also a member of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha at various times from 1971 to 2014. In 2023, Krishna was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award of India.
India has a parliamentary system as defined by its constitution, with power distributed between the union government and the states. India's democracy is the largest democracy in the world.
Basangouda Ramangouda Patil Yatnal is an Indian Bharatiya Janata Party politician and Hindu leader who was the Minister of state for Textiles from 1 July 2002 to 8 September 2003 and Minister of state for Railways from 8 September 2003 to 16 May 2004 and current MLA from Bijapur City Assembly constituency since 2018. He has been a member of parliament from the Bijapur constituency for two terms and has been a member of the legislative council from the Bijapur Local Authorities constituency for one term.
Haradanahalli Devegowda Kumaraswamy, is an Indian politician and film producer who is serving as 22nd Minister of Heavy Industries, 35th Minister of Steel since 2024. He also served as the 18th Chief Minister of Karnataka from 2018 to 2019 and previously from 2006 to 2007. He was also the leader of the opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly from 2013 to 2014. He is currently the president of the Karnataka State Janata Dal (Secular). He is a member of Lok Sabha, having been elected from Mandya and the former member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly from Channapatna from 2018 to 2024, Ramanagara from 2004 to 2009 and from 2013 to 2018. He is the son of former prime minister of India & former Chief Minister of Karnataka H. D. Deve Gowda.
Parvatagouda Gaddigoudar is a member of the 16th Lok Sabha of India. He also represented the 14th Lok Sabha. He represents the Bagalkot constituency of Karnataka since 2004 and is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) political party.
Captain Sachin Rajesh Pilot is an Indian politician. A member of the Indian National Congress, he has been serving as Member of Rajasthan Legislative Assembly from Tonk since 2018. He has previously served as Minister of State of Corporate Affairs and Communication and IT in the Government of India under Manmohan Singh. Additionally he served as the Deputy Chief Minister of Rajasthan from 2018 to 2020 under Ashok Gehlot. Pilot became the youngest citizen of India to become Member of Parliament at the age of 26.
Anantkumar Hegde is an Indian politician, the former Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and the former five time Member of Parliament for Uttara Kannada constituency. Hegde is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Hegde is a Hindu nationalist and a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) volunteer.
Ballari Sreeramulu is an Indian politician who served as Minister of Transport Department and Tribal Welfare of Karnataka from 4 August 2021 till 13 May 2023. He was the Minister of Social Welfare Department of Karnataka from 12 October 2020 to 26 July 2021. He was member of Karnataka Legislative Assembly from Bellary Rural Molakalmuru Constituency in Chitradurga district. He is the Social Welfare minister in the Government of Karnataka. He served as a Health and Family welfare minister previously from also as a Minister of Backward class welfare from September 2019 to October 2020. He serves in the Bharatiya Janata Party government led by B. S. Yediyurappa. He served as a member of Lok Sabha from 2014-2018 from Ballari. In March 2024, he was announced as the BJP candidate from the same constituency in the 2024 General Elections.
Members of the 15th Lok Sabha were elected during the 2009 general election in India. It was dissolved on 18 May 2014 by President Pranab Mukherjee.
Bangalore Rural (Ramanagara) Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 28 Lok Sabha constituencies in the South Indian state of Karnataka. This constituency was created in 2008 following the delimitation of parliamentary constituencies.
Mapanna Mallikarjun Kharge is an Indian lawyer and politician serving as the President of the Indian National Congress since 2022, and Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha since 2021. He has been a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from Karnataka since 2020.
Shobha Karandlaje is an Indian politician from Karnataka who is currently the Minister of State for Ministry of Labour and Employment, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the Third Modi Ministry. She was also Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Minister of State for Food Processing Industries in the Second Modi ministry. She is also the Vice President of Bharatiya Janata Party, Karnataka and Member of Parliament representing Bangalore North since 2024, and represented Udupi Chikmagalur Lok Sabha Constituency from 2014 to 2024. She was a cabinet minister in the Government of Karnataka. She is a close confidant to former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa.
Udupi Chikmagalur Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 28 Lok Sabha constituencies in Karnataka a state in southern India. This constituency was created as part of the implementation of the delimitation of the parliamentary constituencies in 2008, based on the recommendations of the Delimitation Commission of India constituted in 2002. It first held elections in 2009 and its first member of parliament was D. V. Sadananda Gowda of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Gowda was selected on 4 August 2011 to become Chief Minister (CM) of Karnataka after the previous CM B. S. Yeddyurappa resigned. He therefore had to resign as MP for this seat which forced a by-election in 2012. This by-election was won by K. Jayaprakash Hegde of the Indian National Congress (INC). As of the latest elections in 2019, Shobha Karandlaje of the BJP represents this constituency.
Daradahalli Byregowda Chandregowda was an Indian politician who was Speaker of Karnataka Legislative Assembly, three-term MLA, one-term MLC, and Member of Parliament—three-terms from Lok Sabha and one-term from Rajya Sabha.
Allola Indrakaran Reddy is an Indian politician who was the Minister of State for Endowments, Law and Forest, Environment, Science and Technology of Telangana since 2019. He was elected as MLA of Nirmal in 2014 General Election as BSP candidate and won over Sri Hari Rao by margin of 10,000 votes. He later joined the TRS Party and became Minister in charge of law, housing and endowments. He was Member of Parliament of India. He was a member of the 10th and 14th Lok Sabhas. Reddy represented the Adilabad constituency of United Andhra Pradesh.
Sobaganahalli Papegowda Muddahanumegowda is an Indian former advocate, former Judicial Officer and Member of Parliament in 16th Lok Sabha. He belongs to the Indian National Congress party.
Elections in the Republic of India in 2018 included by-elections to the Lok Sabha, elections to the Rajya Sabha, elections to of eight states and numerous other by-elections to state legislative assemblies, councils and local bodies.
