Lok Sabha 17

Come June 2024, voters will elect to power India's 18th Lok Sabha. The nation's “mammoth” electoral exercise — the largest election in human history — will give way to a verdict that has historically reflected people's desires and despairs. As the election season sets in, we look back, tracing independent India's political history through the lens of The Hindu's archives. As with a time capsule, this interactive article takes you through the spectacular and stormy ongoings of each Lok Sabha since 1952: the people, the politics and the policies that defined India through the years. The social and cultural undercurrents also reveal themselves; the people's mandate always revealed the pulse that thrummed through the nation, steady or otherwise.

This is the story of how India voted, from 1952 to 2019, and a glimpse into how The Hindu reported and documented these historical events in the pages of the newspaper. Read Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru's speeches. Watch how India conducted its elections in the 1950s. Revisit the uncertainty of 2020, when Narendra Modi declared a nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. Take a quiz about Indian leaders. And solve a jigsaw puzzle in the end. Read, listen, watch, play - engage with an independent India's political history through The Hindu's lens.

Before you dive into India’s past, here’s a glance at its future. Piece together this puzzle of politicians starring in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The partition, Congress's role in the freedom struggle, Jawaharlal Nehru's appeal and a growing need for stability — democratic and economic — informed the anatomy and ambition of the first Lok Sabha.

The ruling Congress consolidated its position in a post-independent India, benefiting from the absence of a strong Opposition and Jawaharlal Nehru's popularity and socialist vision.

Congress formed the government for the third time but was beset with early signs of internal dissent. Regional parties gained national popularity, India went to war with China and Pakistan, and the non-alignment stance guided India's foreign policy.

India's first, and only, female Prime Minister Indira Gandhi comes to power, enacting policies to curb economic distress. Internal conflict threatens Congress's stability, giving way to the emergence of coalition governments.

Indira Gandhi's 'Garibi Hatao' slogan and role in Bangladesh war strengthened her appeal among the masses, but concern grew over her authoritarian streak within the party. India saw one of the darkest periods of post-independent history with the declaration of Emergency and the suspension of civil liberties.

In the aftermath of the Emergency, disillusioned voters ejected the Congress from power and elected the Janata Party, led by Morarji Desai. Internal conflict destabilised the new government too.

Indira Gandhi returns to power after the Janata Party experiment failed at the Centre. New challenges sprung forth, including unemployment, labour unrest and increasing militancy in Punjab.

Rajiv Gandhi fuels Congress's resurgence and N.T. Rama Rao redefines Andhra's politics. Communal disharmony, anti-Sikh riots and Bofors scam defined the social climate.

This was the first time in history no party enjoyed a majority in the Lok Sabha. Janata Dal’s V. P. Singh briefly led the National Front coalition. The ‘Mandir and Mandal’ politics stirred unrest across a polarised nation.

Narasimha Rao rewrote India's economic policy, marking the beginning of the liberalisation era. The Babri Masjid demolition and Mandal Commission report injected a note of violent polarisation.

Caste-based and regional politics came to power, as disillusionment with the now-disgraced Congress government grew. Elsewhere, corruption scandals and coalition instability bogged down the United Front government led by Janata Dal leaders.

The House sat for its shortest-ever duration, hindered by coalition instability. Atal Bihari Vajpayee's leadership pushed the Bharatiya Janata Party to national prominence.

The Kargil War boosted Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's popularity. The 2001 Parliament breach, 2002 Gujarat riots and ideological fissures within the BJP later spelled trouble for the National Democratic Alliance.

The Manmohan Singh-led government distinguished itself for a sustained economic growth, key legislation including the Right to Information Act and National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the historic Indo-U.S. Civil Nuclear Deal.

The Congress-led UPA retained power, passing key legislation including the Right to Education Act and reorganisation of Andhra Pradesh. The government crumbled under the weight of economic slowdown and corruption scandals.

The BJP rides on the popularity of the 'Modi Wave', with the promise of 'acche din' challenging the stasis and corruption of the incumbent Congress.

Narendra Modi-led BJP government consolidates power. National security, COVID-19 pandemic, farmers' unrest, communal clashes, CAA protests and abrogation of Article 370 form undercurrents of this divisive period.