Role of Syndicates in the appointment of Lal Bahadur Shastri as the pm of India 1964.

(6marks)

 There were fears of turmoil in congress on the issue of succession.

 Nehru being a true democrat had not named any successor.
 Gulzari Lal Nanda made the acting pm.
 There were 2 contenders for the post of prime minister- Morarji Desai and Lal Bahadur
Shastri
 Desai was experienced, senior and sound administrator, known for his righteousness. But he
was also rigid and inflexible. He was arrogant in outlook and was not very popular with the
Congress men.
 On the other hand, Shastri was mild, malleable, highly respected and incorruptible.
 Desai was unacceptable to the Syndicate whereas Shastri was acceptable as he could keep
the congress party united.
 They also hoped that he would be more amenable to their wishes and not challenge their
authority.
 They also wanted to avoid a context which would lead to factionalism within the party.
 Kamraj met a dozen chief ministers, as many as 200 members of the parliament; from his
conversations it appeared that Desai was a controversial choice.
 Shastri was more accessible, a fine administrator and from the Hindi heartland.
 Nehru had come to rely increasingly on Shastri in his later days instead of Desai, whom he
saw as a threat

Significance

 The results showed that Universal Adult Franchise was well justified
 The communal and leftist parties had been rejected
 The Princely class and landlords still exerted influence in Orissa, Rajasthan and North East.
Individual Princely candidates emerged victorious
 It revealed Congress domination in the Lok Sabha, but a healthy presence of opposition and
democratic culture emerged
 In some places pressure of factionalism (division), corruption and fight for tickets were detected
 Election was to be established as the process for making a changing of government
 One remarkable feature was that many parties contested freely.
 Untouchables and Brahmins stood in the same line
 It was no longer believed that literacy was the test of intelligence
 The Communist emerged as the Second largest party
 Mock elections were conducted to make the people familiar with the election procedure.

Why Syndicate chose Indira Gandhi as PM 1966

 She had an all India appeal

 She was not identified with any party, region or caste
 The Syndicate also thought that she would depend on them a lot as she had very little
administrative experience
 They also felt that she could be easily controlled as she was very young and the Syndicate would
be able to assert their authority without any problem
 They also were of the view that they would have a free hand in the appointment of the cabinet
ministers as Mrs. Gandhi was not familiar with many.
 Morarji Desai also decided to challenge this issue and voting took place within the party through
secret ballot. In 1966 Mrs Gandhi defeated Desai by 355 to 369 votes and many state leaders
also supported her.

Significance of 1967 elections

Though Congress had won for the fourth time, the number of seats was less. The reasons for the
same were:

 The death of Jawaharlal Nehru and Lal bahadur Shastri, the two important leaders.
 The internal crisis in the party as booth Mrs. Indira Gandhi and Morarji Desai wanted the
Prime Minister’s position

 The congress lost 60 seats in the Lower House and could only win 238 seats
 Though Mrs. Gandhi became Pm, her assertive ways put her against the party high
command. She was expelled from the party on grounds of ‘indiscipline’, which resulted in
the division of the party into two factions: Congress ‘O’ and Congress ‘I’ (Indira)

Radical impact of 1967 elections on Indian Politics

 The Congress party had exhausted its mandate and lost its character and motivation as a
party of social and institutional change
 There was large scale dissatisfaction with the top Congress leaders because of corruption
and lavish lifestyle.
 People felt frustrated because there was no party which could replace Congress.
 However, there was a great political awakening among the people because 60% of the
eligible voters voted in 1967, the highest witnessed so far.

 1967 elections saw the coming together of the political Parties. some of them are formed
aunty Congress Fronts in some States. In some cases, the entered into electoral registers by
sharing seats and avoiding contact.
 Not only did Congress lose some seats in the Lok Sabha but it also lost its majority in the
legislative assemblies of 8 states: Bihar Uttar Pradesh Punjab West Bengal Madras Calcutta
Orissa Rajasthan
 The opposition parties were fully aware of the weaknesses of the ruling party and were bent
upon exploiting them to capture power both in the centre and in the states.
 However, made the opposition more divided and less United than during the third general
election
a) The Communist Party got split into CPI and CPI(M)
b) A number of smaller parties emerged in the states
c) The general elections gave several political parties opportunity to assume power either
alone or in a combination. For example, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) scored a
comfortable victory over the Congress in the Legislative Assembly
d) Every leader of Congress was defeated by DMK including president Kamaraj
e) The 1967 elections introduced several first-time elements in Indian politics that have
remained in place today and are likely to be influencing factors is in the general elections
 Circumstances that lead to the developments leading to the split in the congress in 1969

 Even after the defeat of the Syndicate in 1967, Mrs. Gandhi still had little organizational base
in the party and the Syndicate saw to it, that persons favourable to them were elected to the
CWC (Congress Working Committee). 
 They did not let Mrs. Gandhi take decision in the party affair
 During 1968-69 the Syndicate tried to dislodge MRs Gandhi from the post of Prime Minister
 She moved cautiously and gradually began to assert her position within the government and
the party
 She chose her trusted group of advisors from outside the party
 She launched a series of Pro left programmes which was a very bold strategy in 1967
 She projected herself as the upholder of socialism and secularism
 She began a pro poor programme and said that it was needed for the country
 In the presidential elections she supported vv giri and told the congress to ‘vote from
conscience’

Background to the Congress Split 1969

 The death of Lal Bahadur Shastri (Jan 1966) just hours after signing the treaty with Pakistan once
again brought up the question of his successor as Prime Minister. 
 The most experienced administrator was Morarji Desai, and he had a record of integrity. 
 However the power group in Congress – called the Syndicate – wanted a more pliable candidate.
 The Syndicate (1966-67) was a group of powerful leaders which dominated the Congress
organization: K Kamaraj(President of Congress,  from Tamil Nadu),
S Nijalingappa, and Atulya Ghosh from Karnataka and Bengal respectively, N. Sanjiva Reddy
from Andhra Pradesh and S K Patil (Maharashtra).
 Many chief ministers in the states also saw them as the power in the party. 
 The choice of the Syndicate fell on Mrs. Indira Gandhi.  She had an all India appeal and was not
identified with any party, region or caste.
 The Syndicate also thought that she would depend on them a lot as she had very little
administrative experience. 
 However Morarji Desai also decided to force the issue, and it went to a secret ballot.
 In 1966, Mrs Gandhi defeated Desai by 355 votes to 169. 
 Many state leaders also supported her. 
 Mrs Gandhi was faced immediately with several problems.
1. In Punjab there was a demand for a  “Punjabi suba” – Punjabi state by the Sikhs and an
insurgency in the North East by the Naga and Mizo tribes.
2. It was difficult to ignore the demands of the Sikhs, given their presence in the armed forces
and their contribution in the 1965 war with Pakistan.
3. In March, 1966, a committee of MPs recommended a threefold division of Punjab: the hill
districts would go to Himachal Pradesh, and the eastern Hindu (Hindi speaking) areas would
form a new state Haryana.
4. The remaining part would be a state dominated by Sikhs and Punjabi speaking.  
5. In the North East, the insurgencies continued despite a crackdown by the armed forces. 
6. She was being controlled by Syndicate
7. She could not make decisions or select members
 The economic situation was also quite grave.
1. The country was undergoing a recession with industrial production and exports declining.
2. Poor rains led to famine like conditions in Bihar and Eastern UP.
 3. The wars against China and Pakistan in 1962 and 1965 had led to a rise of military
expenditure, which was diverted from development. 
4. India was forced to import wheat from USA under the PL 480 scheme.
5. There were also strikes and demonstrations by students and government servants against
high food prices, shortages and unemployment. 
6. In order to boost exports and under pressure from the IMF and the World Bank, the
government devalued the Indian rupee by 35%.
7. This was a controversial measure and was widely criticized by the left, the intelligentsia and
the Syndicate who felt that they had not been consulted. 
 To make it worse opposition parties launched various agitations.
 The decline of Parliament can be traced from this time –
1. members were often rowdy and exhibited unparliamentary behaviour. 
2. It had been noticed that the Congress had been losing support and riddled with factionalism
and nepotism. 
3. Mrs. Gandhi’s position with respect to the powerful Syndicate was also weak.
4. On becoming Prime Minister, she was not able to form a cabinet of her choice, leaving the
important portfolios undisturbed.
5. The Syndicate also interfered in implementation of policies.
6. Nor did they let her have much of a say in the internal affairs of the party, particularly in the
selection of candidates for elections.
7. At this point Mrs. Gandhi lacked a popular base and was not able to assert herself. 

Result of the election of  1967:

1. The election 0f 1967 drastically changed the balance of power within Congress. The Syndicate
was weakened  as several stalwarts failed to get elected, including Kamaraj and S K Patil.
Many of their followers also failed to get elected to Parliament and the state assemblies.  
 Mrs Gandhi’s position became stronger. 
 She  became aware of the declining influence of the Congress (see the notes on election of 
1967) and began to think of a more leftward “pro-people”) approach to regain popular support.
 She got more freedom in Cabinet selection: Morarji Desai’s challenge was offset by making him
Deputy Prime Minister. 

2. 1967-69: 
 these were years when the conflict between the two wings of the Congress became more
pronounced. 
  Even after the defeat of the Syndicate in 1967, Mrs. Gandhi still had little organizational base in
the party and the Syndicate saw to it, that persons favourable to them were elected to the CWC
(Congress Working Committee). They now began working to remove her. 
 At first she was quite cautious , but refused to allow interference in the position of prime
minister and formulation of policy.  

3. 10 Point Programme
 In 1967 the CWC adopted a 10 Point Programme, which provided for nationalization and social
control over banking and insurance, curb on “business monopolies”, public distribution of
food grains , and abolition of princely privilege, among other similar measures. 
 These measures were opposed by the Syndicate and their supporters. 

The Presidential election 1969:

 In 1969, President Zakir Husain died and a fresh Presidential election was due. 
 The Syndicate used their power to nominate N. Sanjeeva Reddy – one of their number -  as the
Congress candidate for President.   
 Mrs. Gandhi then decided to seek support of the electorate directly.
 She removed Desai as Finance Minister, and he then resigned from the Cabinet. 
 She announced  a list of changes which made her seem the champion of the masses:
nationalization of the banks,  and removal of the privy purses of the princes.   

The Presidential election

 Sanjeeva Reddy was opposed by C D Deshmukh, a senior statesman and Vice-President
V V Giri. (2nd candidate from Gandhi’s side)
 But to assure Reddy’s election, Nijalingappa made a secret deal with the
Jana Sangh and Swatantra Party to cast their second preference votes in favour of Reddy.
 This was a blunder as Mrs. Gandhi now accused the Syndicate of allying with reactionary and
communal forces.
 She now asked the Congress to vote “according to their conscience”.
 The result was that many MPs defied the party and voted for  Giri  who was elected by a
narrow margin in August 1969. 

The final confrontation:

 Mrs Gandhi now accused the Syndicate of conformism and wanting to extend the status
quo, and openly declared “The Congress stands for democracy, secularism, socialism and
non-alignment in international relations”. 
 In November, the Syndicate took disciplinary action against Mrs Gandhi and expelled her
from the party.
 She immediately set up a new party which came to be known as Congress (R); the
Syndicate dominated  group were  known as Congress (O).
 In the final countdown 220 of the Congress MPs supported  Mrs  Gandhi, and only 68 went
with the Syndicate.
 In the AICC also 446 out of 705 went with  Mrs.  Gandhi.   
 Mrs.  Gandhi was now the unchallenged leader of the new party and of the government.
 The Congress (R) became the ruling party and the Congress (O) soon faded out. 
 Mrs.  Gandhi enjoyed the support of the masses and a large section of the intelligentsia.
She now began to follow the left of  center  policies which she felt would bring her popular

Election of 1971:
 Despite her victory over the Syndicate, Mrs Gandhi did not enjoy an absolute majority in
Parliament and was dependent on other parties for outside support. 
 Measures such as bank nationalization and abolition of the privy purses of the princes met
with opposition in Parliament and the Supreme Court.
 She called fresh elections in 1971, hoping to get an absolute majority in Parliament. 
 The opposition created a “Grand Alliance” in the hope of dislodging her from power. 
 But her slogan “Garibi hatao” got great support from the great mass of people, while her
claims of providing stability appealed to the middle classes. 

Causes of Naxalbari Movement

 Mismanagement of forest by the government let to the influx of moneylenders in the tribal
areas.
 The local inhabitants were rejected from their traditional land.
  There were also failures to implement the provisions of the Ninth Schedule which stated
how much land an individual could hold.
 The excess lands were to be obtained and redistributed by the government among the
peasants for the purpose of cultivation.
 The share croppers were under tenants and small cultivators were denied their basic rights
with regard to security of tenure and payment of fair wages.
 Economic disparity was larger in tribal areas because tenancy reforms introduced by the
government had loopholes in its implementation, this led to widening gap between rich and
poor
 The educated youth became the biggest supporters of the Naxal Movement as a large
number of youths involved in this movement were engineering and medical students
 The CPI(M) has been in organizing the peasants in North Bengal. Kanu Sanyal initiated a
violent uprising to distribute the land to the landless peasants
 In China the Great Cultural Revolution maintained the revolutionary momentum using the
youth. All this had an impact on India also.
 The US involvement in Vietnam merged with violent outburst of the Black and Women's
movement in America

Struggle carried out by peasants and students

Role of Students in the Naxal Movement

 The Naxal Movement found enormous support among the educated youth.

 Universities became hotbeds of radical ideologies.

 Some students went to rural areas to mobilize the people there and some stayed back in the
cities, carrying out acts of violence in an attempt to overthrow the government.

 The students unions of colleges of Calcutta University were taken over by the Radicals.

 The Movement spread to the colleges of Delhi and other universities.

 The students sought to emulate the Red Guards (the so called student revolutionaries
instigated by Mao in the Cultural Revolution)by attacking the police and teachers as they
saw them as counter revolutionary.

 A prominent murder was that of Dr. Gopal Sen, the Vice-Chancellor of Jadavpur University.

 Many student activists were killed in clashes or detained by the police

Role of government in curbing the Naxals

 The government enacted several laws to empower themselves to combat he Naxal

 The West Bengal Government enacted the PREVENTION OF VOILENT ACTIVITIES ACT (1970)
 The Naxal Uprising was crushed in a few months by the security forces of Bengal
 Various Anti-Terror Acts have been used to curb the Naxal Uprising and violence. This trend
was followed in several states
 The Central Government brought in the army to supress the movement.
 Along with arrests, illicit weapons, ammunitions and explosives were seized
  Besides West Bengal, Government action was conducted in Bihar and Orissa where many
Naxals were believed to have fled
 Charu Majumdar was arrested, who later died in police custody.

Charu Majumdar Role in the Naxalbari Movement

 Charu Majumdar started the Naxalbari Movement in West

 They later became ‘comrade in arms’
 Charu Majumdar was earlier a part of the CPI movement of India. In May 1967, an armed
peasant uprising against the oppression of landlord broke out in the Naxalbari district in
Darjeeling
 This movement was actively led by Sanyal and Majumdar and was seen as an agrarian
revolution to eliminate the feudal order.

Development leading to Naxalite Movement in 1937, West Bengal

• Naxal Bari is a village in WB where some members of the communist party incited an
uprising in the year 1937
• The main cause of the conflict was: Implementation of Fifth Schedule. According to the
Schedule all forest reserves and lands that are reserved by the schedule tribes are to be
administered by Schedule Advisory Council (independent of the state government)
Mismanagement of forest by the government let to the influx of moneylenders in the
tribal areas.
• The local inhabitants were rejected from their traditional land.
• There was also failures to implement the provisions of the Ninth Schedule which stated
how much land an individual could hold.
• The excess lands were to be obtained and redistributed by the government among the
peasants for the purpose of cultivation.
• The share croppers were under tenants and small cultivators were denied their basic
rights with regard to security of tenure and payment of fair wages.
• Economic disparity was larger in tribal areas because tenancy reforms introduced by the
government had loopholes in its implementation, this led to widening gap between rich
and poor
• The educated youth became the biggest supporters of the Naxal Movement as a large
number of youth involved in this movement were engineering and medical students
• The CPI(M) has been in organizing the peasants in North Bengal. Kanu Sanyal initiated a
violent uprising to distribute the land to the landless peasants
• In China the Great Cultural Revolution maintained the revolutionary momentum using
the youth. All this had an impact on India also.
• The US involvement in Vietnam merged with violent outburst of the Black and Women's
movement

Kanu Sanyal

• In 1967 he famously led the armed peasants movement in Naxalbari village in West
Bengal
• The movement marked the beginning of the armed struggle.
 • Sanyal who had gone underground was arrested in August 1970
• He was convicted in Parvatipuram case (uprising against landlords) in Andhra
Pradesh. He was imprisoned for 7 years in Vishakhapatna
• On 23rd March 2010 Sanyal was found hanging by his neck in his residence in
Siligudi

Charu Majumdar

• Both were a part of the Militant peasant movement which started in the Naxalbari
region of
• Charu Majumdar 8 article is called “Historic Eight Articles “which contain the
ideological foundations of the Naxalites
• He argued in these articles that revolution must take the path of an armed struggle
on the pattern of Chinese Revolution
• Very soon Charu Majumdar broke away and formed All India Coordination
Committee of Communist Revolutionaries which in 1969 founded the communist
party of India ML (Marxist-Leninist) with Charu Majumdar as its general secretary
• He was ultimately captured from his hideout In 1972, he was arrested from his
hideout and died in police custody at the Calcutta jail a fortnight later.

Decline and suppression of the movement

• China’s stance on the Bangladesh War (1971 Indo-Pak) and internal disputes within
the Naxalite leaders split the already fragmented leadership
• India national Congress (INC) organized Anti Naxalite Volunteer groups who applied
violence against the Naxalites in a ferocious way
• The Naxalite morale also became low because of the crackdown of the Indian Army
and the police
• Suspected Naxalites were arrested in large numbers and their arms and weapons
were seized
• In one incident some 150 members were massacred near Calcutta
• July 1972 Police forces arrested Charu Majumdar, his death in custody signalled the
end of Naxalite Movement in West Bengal
• With the failure of the Naxal Uprising, Kanu Sanyal went into hiding while the
Movement disintegrated. He was in prison for 7 years
• But the movement did not die out, it resurfaced in the tribal heartland of India in the
80s and 90 -Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh

Q) What was the primary objective of Sampoorna Kranti Movement

• it wanted bring about Social Transformation through participation of youth in Social

Activities
• To fight corruption in Bihar And Gujarat
• To remove Mrs. Gandhi or Congress from power
 Origin of JP Movement and ALL INDIA TOUR

 JP’s all India tour called for the removal of the Congress and an end to corruption in
government.

 He called for the unity of the opposition to build a genuine people’s movement.

 The Movement attracted a variety of supporters- students,

 middle class, intelligentsia and traders.

 His impact was particularly felt in areas where the old Socialists and Jan Sangh were
strong.

 It also got the support of the non- Left opposition parties, who saw in JP a credible
alternative.

 They felt that he would also help them to recover from their loss in the elections of
1971.

 JP also needed their support to oppose Mrs. Gandhi.

 In early 1975 , JP addressed a huge meeting in the Boat Club Lawns in Delhi.

 After that he presented a long memorandum of demands to the Speaker of the

PARLIAMENT.

 At the first anniversary of the movement , he called for the formation of a single front to
fight the Congress in the future elections.

Mrs. Gandhi challenged the movement in the coming elections (February-March 1976).

Give an account of the main features of the course of JP movement which led to the declaration of
Emergency on 25th June 1975

• From 1973, there was a sharp decline in the Congress support as the economy,
quality and credibility, of the government suffered
• The popular disillusionment or dissatisfaction found its expression in the JP
Movement
• From 1973, the economic situation deteriorated. There was a combination of
recession(when there is low output and low production), growing unemployment
and scarcity of basic foods stuffs and essential commodities which created a large
budgetary deficit
• All this led to widespread unrest and strikes especially in Gujarat and Bihar
• In Gujarat, the Nav Nirman Movement was started by students due to short age of
essential commodities. The chief minister Chimin Bhai Patel was close to resign and
Presidents Rule ended in March 1975
• Inspired by Gujarat’s example, a similar movement began in Bihar. In Bihar too there
was resentment and government corruption, price rise, shortages and inequality of
land ownership in the rural areas
 • The non-communist groups in Bihar got widespread support such as Jan Sang and
Chhaatra Sangharsh Committee.
• After the Patna clash (May 1974), the CSC asked JP Narayan to take over the
leadership of the movement.
• He agreed provided the movement was non-violent and was not only restricted to
Bihar
• The entry of JP have the struggle a great moral boost. He appealed to the students
to boycott classes and people to raise the consciousness of the government
• The result was constant clashes between the students and the police
• On 5th June 1974, at a mammoth meeting JP called for a total revolution (thus,
Sampoorna Kranti Movement) against the corruption of the government
• State legislatures were asked to resign and Assembly was to be dissolved
• JP toured the country calling for the removal of Mrs. Gandhi and Congress
• The impact was particularly felt where the old Socialist and Jan Sang party were
strong
• His movement attracted supported from all sections of the society

Mrs. Gandhi challenged the movement in the upcoming elections scheduled for Feb-March 1976.
Elections did not take place so she declared an Emergency (25th June 1976) to meet the challenges
of JP’s call to gherao her residence and call for mass civil disobedience.

Main features of Emergency 25th June 1975

 The federal provisions of the constitution were suspended

 Fundamental rights were also suspended
 A stifling press censorship was imposed
 There were large scale arrests and detention of opposition leaders, student leaders and
journalist under the Draconian law MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act)
 Parliament became inactive and those opposition leaders who had not been arrested, their
speeches were not permitted to be reported in the press
 State governments of Tamil Nadu and Orissa were dismissed
 Descent within the Congress party was suppressed
 Mrs. Gandhi 20-point programme was introduced to win the support of the people
 Reduction in price of essential qualities and end of rural indebtedness, higher wages, lower
taxes for working and middle/lower classes and end to bonded labour were some of the 20-
point programme
 Decrease in amendments reduced the power of judiciary and changed the nature of the
constitution
 38th Amendment removed the proclamation of emergency from the purview of judicial
 The 42nd amendment gave primacy (directive principles became more important over the
fundamental rights)
 Sanjay Gandhi's power began to increase; his 4-point programme overtook the 20-point
programme of Mrs. Gandhi. The full brunt of his programme fell on the poor, particularly
post sterilization and slum clearance.

Reaction of the People to the Proclamation of Emergency

 Most people had no experience of authoritarian rule, so many considered it as good because
of the well publicized measures of the emergency.
 People welcomed the decrease in prices of essential commodities.
 People also accepted it because Mrs.Gandhi kept insisting that it was a temporary measure.
 But in the long run people got disillusioned with Emergency because the economic situation
did not improve.
 The power of the bureaucracy and police remained unchecked.
 The suppression of the civil rights began to be felt by the ordinary people.

 The intelligentsia was outraged because Mrs. Gandhi got the Parliament to postpone
elections for one year.

 Sanjay Gandhi formulated his own 4-Point Programme such as Family Planning ,Anti-Dowry,
Planting Trees and Promoting Literacy, which soon overtook the 20 Point Programme.

 While they were worthy aims, their implementation was faulty. For example was pushed in a
forceful way and slum clearance was carried out in a brutal way.

Positive and negative reactions of the emergency

 Most people had no experience of authoritarian rule, so they considered it as good because
of the well published positive measures of the Emergency.
 People welcomed the decrease in prices of essential commodities.
 Measures taken to improve the conditions of the rural poor was appreciated.
 People also accepted it because Mrs. Gandhi kept insisting that it was a temporary measure
and that democracy would be soon restored.
 But in the long run people got disillusioned with the Emergency
 because the economic situation of the country did not improve.
 The power of the bureaucracy and the police remained unchecked.
 The suppression of the civil rights began to be felt by the ordinary people.
 The intelligentsia was outraged because Mrs, Gandhi got the Parliament to postpone the
elections for one year.
 Sanjay Gandhi began to assume more power in the Emergency period, ordering the officials
and ministers around though he held no official position.
 Sanjay Gandhi formulated his own 4-point Programme, which soon overtook the 20-Point
Programme. While they were worthy measures their implementation was faulty. For
example, Family Planning was pushed in a forceful way.
 His forced sterilization programme became very unpopular during Emergency.