Recent Developments in Indian Politics

The late 1980s and early 1990s witnessed five monumental transformations that permanently altered the landscape of Indian politics:

1. 1. End of the "Congress System" & Multi-Party Coalitions: In the November 1989 elections, the Congress won only 197 seats (down from 415 in 1984). Although it remained the single largest party, no single party won an absolute majority, inaugurating twenty-five continuous years of Coalition Governments at the Centre (1989–2014).
2. 2. Rise of the "Mandal Issue" (OBC Reservations): In August 1990, Prime Minister V.P. Singh announced the implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendation granting 27% reservations to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in Central government employment, igniting mass student protests and legal challenges.
3. 3. The New Economic Policy (NEP 1991): Facing a balance-of-payments bankruptcy, P.V. Narasimha Rao and Dr. Manmohan Singh launched LPG reforms (Liberalisation, Privatisation, Globalisation), dismantling the socialist License-Permit Raj and opening the economy to free-market capitalism.
4. 4. Rise of Hindutva & The Ayodhya Dispute: The rise of the BJP as a national alternative, the 1990 Somnath-Ayodhya Rath Yatra led by L.K. Advani, the demolition of the Babri Masjid on 6 December 1992, communal riots, and debates over secularism versus cultural nationalism.
5. 5. Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi (May 1991): While campaigning in Tamil Nadu, former PM Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by an LTTE suicide bomber. In the ensuing sympathy wave, Congress returned to power under P.V. Narasimha Rao.

A. The 25-Year Era of Coalitions (1989–2014):

Between 1989 and 2014, no single political party won a parliamentary majority on its own, making pre-poll and post-poll alliances mandatory:

• 1. National Front (1989–1990): Led by V.P. Singh (Janata Dal), supported simultaneously from the outside by the BJP and the Left Front! Fell when BJP withdrew support over Advani's arrest during the Rath Yatra.
• 2. United Front (1996–1998): Non-Congress, non-BJP coalition headed by H.D. Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral, supported from outside by Congress.
• 3. National Democratic Alliance (NDA, 1998–2004): Led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee (BJP). In 1999, the NDA won a decisive majority, becoming the first non-Congress coalition government in Indian history to complete a full 5-year term!
• 4. United Progressive Alliance (UPA, 2004–2014): Led by the Congress under Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, completing two successive five-year terms (UPA-I supported by Left Front; UPA-II).

A. The Mandal Commission (Second Backward Classes Commission):

• Appointed in 1978 by the Morarji Desai Janata government, headed by B.P. Mandal (under Article 340). Submitted its landmark report in December 1980.
• Findings & Recommendations:
  • Identified 3,743 distinct castes as socially and educationally backward, estimating that OBCs constituted approximately 52% of India's total population.
  • Recommended that 27% of all jobs in the Central Government and public sector undertakings be reserved for OBCs (ensuring total reservations stayed within the 50% legal limit).
• Implementation (August 1990) & Indira Sawhney Case (1992): Implemented by V.P. Singh. In *Indra Sawhney v. Union of India* (1992), the Supreme Court upheld the 27% OBC reservation, while mandating the exclusion of the socially advanced "Creamy Layer" and enforcing a strict 50% overall cap on total reservations.

B. Dalit Political Assertion & The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP):

• Pioneered by Kanshi Ram, who founded BAMCEF (Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation, 1978) and later the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in 1984.
• Mobilized the *Bahujan* (Dalits, OBCs, and religious minorities) for political power rather than social charity, leading to Mayawati serving four historic terms as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.

A. The Ayodhya Dispute & Rise of the BJP:

• In 1986, the locks of the Babri Masjid were opened by court order to allow Hindu worship. The BJP under L.K. Advani mobilized mass national support through the Somnath-to-Ayodhya Rath Yatra (1990).
• On 6 December 1992, thousands of *Karsevaks* demolished the 16th-century Babri Masjid, triggering widespread communal riots and the dismissal of BJP state governments under Article 356.
• Supreme Court Resolution (November 2019): A unanimous 5-judge constitutional bench resolved the century-old dispute, allocating the disputed land for the construction of the Ram Temple while directing the government to grant 5 acres of alternative land in Ayodhya for a mosque.

B. The Four Pillars of the Emerging Political Consensus:

Despite fierce partisan rhetoric, four major areas of broad national consensus have emerged across all major political parties in India:

1. 1. Agreement on New Economic Policies (LPG): All parties (Congress, BJP, regional parties) support economic liberalization, infrastructure building, and attracting foreign investment.
2. 2. Acceptance of Social & Political Claims of OBCs: Complete cross-party consensus on preserving and expanding affirmative action reservations for backward classes and EWS.
3. 3. Acceptance of the Role of State-Level Regional Parties: Regional parties are universally acknowledged as vital, legitimate power-brokers in national governance.
4. 4. Pragmatic Alliances Over Ideological Dogma: Coalitions are formed based on mutual seat-sharing and governance compromises rather than rigid ideological purity.

C. 2014 & 2019: The Return of Single-Party Majority (Fourth Party System):

In May 2014, the BJP under Narendra Modi won 282 seats (NDA winning 336), and swept back in 2019 with 303 seats (NDA winning 353), ending 25 years of coalition minority rule and establishing the "Second Dominant Party System" / "Fourth Party System" in Indian democratic history.