POLITICAL-HISTORICAL REASONS FOR THE RISE OF NON-CONGRESS GOVERNMENTS IN INDIAN POLITICS
भारतीय राजनीति में गैर-कांग्रेसी सरकार के उदय का राजनीतिक-ऐतिहासिक कारण
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhgyan.v3.i2.2025.67Keywords:
Non-Congress Governments, Erosion of the Congress System, Regional Parties, Coalition Politics, Emergency, Janata Party, Social Polarization and Indian PoliticsAbstract [English]
This paper provides a thorough analysis of the political and historical reasons for the rise of non-Congress governments in Indian politics. Despite the unprecedented dominance of the Indian National Congress in the decades following independence, the emergence of non-Congress political forces in the states after 1967, and especially at the center after 1977, marked a turning point in the history of Indian democracy. This paper argues that this change was not the result of a single event but was driven by a complex interplay of internal erosion of the Congress system, the political empowerment of regional aspirations, and major historical events (such as the Emergency).
As a methodology, this study uses historical analysis and a review of scholarly literature. Key findings include how the decline of internal democracy within the Congress and the centralization of leadership provided an opportunity for the opposition to unite. Additionally, caste- and class-based social polarization (through Mandal politics) gave rise to new political equations, giving regional and ideology-based parties prominence on the national stage. This research highlights the implications of the rise of non-Congress rule for the development of Indian federalism and the strengthening of a culture of multi-party competition.
Abstract [Hindi]
यह शोध पत्र भारतीय राजनीति में गैर-कांग्रेसी सरकारों के उदय के राजनीतिक-ऐतिहासिक कारणों का गहन विश्लेषण करता है। स्वतंत्रता के बाद के दशकों में भारतीय राष्ट्रीय कांग्रेस के अभूतपूर्व प्रभुत्व के बावजूद, 1967 के बाद से राज्यों में और विशेष रूप से 1977 में केंद्र में, गैर-कांग्रेसी राजनीतिक शक्तियों का उद्भव भारतीय लोकतंत्र के इतिहास में एक निर्णायक मोड़ था। इस पत्र का तर्क है कि यह परिवर्तन किसी एक घटना का परिणाम नहीं था, बल्कि यह कांग्रेस प्रणाली के आंतरिक क्षरण, क्षेत्रीय आकांक्षाओं के राजनीतिक सशक्तिकरण, और प्रमुख ऐतिहासिक घटनाओं (जैसे आपातकाल) के एक जटिल अंतर्संबंध से प्रेरित था।
पद्धति के रूप में, यह अध्ययन ऐतिहासिक विश्लेषण और विद्वानों के साहित्य की समीक्षा का उपयोग करता है। मुख्य निष्कर्षों में शामिल है कि कैसे कांग्रेस के भीतर आंतरिक लोकतंत्र का ह्रास और नेतृत्व का केंद्रीकरण ने विपक्ष को एकजुट होने का अवसर प्रदान किया। इसके अतिरिक्त, जाति और वर्ग आधारित सामाजिक ध्रुवीकरण (मंडल राजनीति के माध्यम से) ने नए राजनीतिक समीकरणों को जन्म दिया, जिससे क्षेत्रीय और विचारधारा-आधारित दलों को राष्ट्रीय मंच पर प्रमुखता मिली। यह शोध भारतीय संघवाद के विकास और बहु-दलीय प्रतिस्पर्धा की संस्कृति को मजबूत करने में गैर-कांग्रेसी शासन के उदय के निहितार्थों पर प्रकाश डालता है।
References
Brass, P. R. (1990). The Politics of India Since Independence. Cambridge University Press.
Franda, M. F. (1968). The Congress and the New Politics of Indian States. Asian Survey, 8(9), 785–805. https://doi.org/10.2307/2642519 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2642519
Jaffrelot, C. (2010). India’s Silent Revolution: The Rise of the Lower Castes in North Indian Politics. Columbia University Press.
Jones, M. (1966). The Government and Politics of India. Hutchinson University Library.
Kothari, R. (1970). Politics in India. Orient Longman.
Kothari, R. (1975). Democracy and the Crisis of Change. Asian Survey, 15(7), 600–614. https://doi.org/10.2307/2643369 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2643369
Manor, J. (1988). Tried by Fire: The Experience of the Janata Party. Economic and Political Weekly, 23(47), 2465–2470.
Palanithurai, G. (1995). Federalism and Regionalism in India. South Asian Publishers.
Rudolph, L. I., and Rudolph, S. H. (1987). In Pursuit of Lakshmi: The Political Economy of the Indian State. University of Chicago Press.
Sartori, G. (1976). Parties and Party Systems: A Theoretical Framework. Cambridge University Press.
Sridharan, E. (2004). Electoral Coalitions in India: A Historical Perspective. Contemporary South Asia, 13(2), 231–251. https://doi.org/10.1080/0958493042000230307
Vanaik, A. (1990). The Painful Transition: Bourgeois Democracy in India. Verso.
Wallace, P. (1978). The Emergence of the Janata Party in India: An Historical Analysis. Asian Survey, 18(10), 987–1001. https://doi.org/10.2307/2643567 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2643567
Weiner, M. (1967). Party Building in a New Nation: The Indian National Congress. University of Chicago Press.
Yadav, Y. (2000). Understanding the Second Democratic Upsurge: Trends of Continuity and Change in the Indian electorate. In F. R. Frankel, Z. Hasan, R. Bhargava, and B. Arora (Eds.), Transforming India: Social and political dynamics of democracy (120–145). Oxford University Press.
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Kirti Kumari
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
With the licence CC-BY, authors retain the copyright, allowing anyone to download, reuse, re-print, modify, distribute, and/or copy their contribution. The work must be properly attributed to its author.
It is not necessary to ask for further permission from the author or journal board.
This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.
