The most important desideratum at the present time is stable government. Political parties vie with each other in promising "stability" if voted to power, is essential, if the economy is to progress. This picture was the same during the newly independent India in 1947. Stability was what was desired and craved for. This was provided to India in the face of a stable political party in Indian National Congress, the same party that fought for the Indian independence and the one who pledged to formulate a constitution that would reflect the unique nature of India’s heterogeneity. Rainy Kothari has rightly remarked the Congress rule then to be a “dominant multi-party system”, Congress being the dominant party. Indeed the Congress then have enjoyed immense prestige as the sole party of Indian politics and the other fractions that came to call themselves opposition to the center were mere fragments of varying opinions, never strong enough to provide the Indian populace with an near-able alternative. The Congress itself provided an umbrella for all the regional needs and demands by incorporating them within its all-encompassing party programme. It did not need or perhaps desired for opposition parties to its purpose.
After post independence, when the Congress had constantly lacked in its effort to address the different and divergent regional aspirations, the regions felt the need for some other modes to put forward their demands. This, and the obvious fact that the ‘Congress Systems’ found itself incompetent to do so itself, led to the rise of region based political parties, which only increased in power and importance over time. Taking an example, the latter part of the 1950s saw the CPM [Communist Party of India (Marxist)] rise in West Bengal and Kerela, and the CPM in West Bengal has recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. And even now, Congress is one of the national political parties in India and has won an electoral victory in the 2004 elections, even though it has to share its power with a coalition in UPA. The fact remains; BJP (Bharatiya Janata Dal) had faced the same fate in its NDA alliance during its time. The coalition factor in Congress rule is thus no stranger. Changing times bring forth changing nature… be it life or politics.
The direct question that arrives then is to the fact that whether it is right to call the Congress a hegemonic rule in Indian politics. The fact entails that the Congress did indeed occupy an important position; a dominant one as far as the electoral victory was concerned. But how far does it justify its hegemonic character is not an easy query to address. If one says that the Congress has enjoyed a hegemonic rule in the Indian politics, he is definitely not incorrect. But can he escape the fact that the Congress hegemony had been an organic outcome of the Indian situation? My stand is, he probably will not. And this is the reason why I hold reservations to associate the Congress rule in India with the concept of hegemony.
At the time of independence, the people of India had just witnessed a change in political power from the British East India in the hands of the Congress – a party that was rightly the harbinger of the Independence for the long subdued colonial country. The result was the obvious rise of the party in the first general elections of 1951. And it was an election with obvious choice. The Congress was the only party both in context of stability and encompassing capacity. The oppositions that came about were mere pressure groups and did not have the wide base the Congress provided. The hegemony blame is completely irrelevant here as it was the Congress who was the only political party at that time able to secure an enormous majority in elections. Congress was the only refuge then to give India a stable start to its future aspirations. It was therefore no surprise.
The general elections of 1977 saw the BJP rise to power at the center. The cause generally had been attributed to the fact that it was more a vote against the Congress (Mrs. Gandhi’s emergency regime) that a vote for the BJP. And that government fell at the end of two years with the Congress back in power. The weak coalition was marked by a strong undercurrent of dissent and lead to its breaking apart in1979. So what did this imply? That the Congress had been hegemonic… a constant factor as far as political leadership in India is concerned? Probably yes, then again probably not. The BJP had then certainly grown strong enough to act as a good opposition, but had lacked the infrastructure and the age experience where Indian politics was concerned. In a nutshell, to take the reins of the Indian chariot from the Congress was not its cup of tea. Once voted in power, this feature was evident from the constant inter-party tussle that it had experienced during its two-year term. Clearly, the BJP had been strong (as opposition), but not strong enough to rule at the center. The rise of stronger, regional parties was also witnessed now as the 1977 electoral results saw a coalition of some sort for the first time in India since her Independence.
The decades of the 80s have been completely under the influence of the Congress, a point to be noted here is that the entire decade of the 90s has been under the spell of “hung Parliament”. This had led many to opine that perhaps the Congress is no longer what it was. Strangely enough, it was still one of the parties claiming the center for the larger part of these two decades. In 1992, the heretofore one-party-dominant politics in India gave way to a coalition system and no single party achieved a majority in the Parliament to form a Government, but rather had to depend on a process of coalition building with other parties to form a bloc and claim a majority to be invited to form the Government. This has been a consequence of strong regional parties which ride on the back of regional aspirations. While parties like the TDP and the DMK had traditionally been strong regional contenders, the 1990s saw the emergence of other regional players such as the Lok Dal, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Janta Dal. These parties are traditionally based on regional aspirations, e.g. Telengana Rastra Samiti or strongly influenced by caste considerations, e.g. Bahujan Samaj Party which claims to represent the Dalits.
A coalition of non-congress parties was formed again in 1996, but was a lost cause by 1997, when it became a congress supported regime. It disintegrated in 1998, which swept the (National Democratic Alliance) to the power for the first time. This too was short-lived and lost the majority on the floor of the house by a single vote in a no-confidence motion. A coalition of non-congress parties worked for the first time in the period 1999-2004, when for the first time, a non-congress government was able to complete its term in office. It was upheld as a uniqeness in the history of Indian politics.
But again the UPA victory with Congress as the leading party was seen in power in the 2004 elections. The cause to such development are varied, but the fact remains, Vajpayee’s ‘Feel Good India’ and India Shining’ did not quite shine at the electoral campaigns. Congress was back in power. The introduction of VAT to quote an example, did not go down well with the urban- business comminity, where on the other hand, Industrial development and plans to develop ‘Urban India’ was used by critics and opponents to show NDA apathy towards the rural… the real picture of India’s population, who depend directly and indirectly on agriculture for their livelihood. Whatever be the cause, the 2004 elections was quite a surprise as far as Congress victory was concerned, but expected. Indian voters have only two alternative, either vote for one or the other as far as politics at center is concerned. And at today’s time, this must not be seen as superiorty of the two parties at the center.
India is witnessing today the phase of coalition. Every party at the center, whether be it BJP or the Congress, is incomplete without a significant number of regional parties tagging along. Thus, the Congress hegemony at the years closer to independence was due to the fact that others were not strongly developed yet, and its rule at present is because it had provided more consumer friendly package that the NDA at the electoral campaigns.The upcoming elections may or may not witness Congress rise to power again. The market is fast changing, so is the demand, so is the need of the people and the political parties are in a competitive phase to keep up. At this point in time, their can be no steadfast rule as to who will be in power and for how long. Hegemony in Indian politics is no longer the main issue of contemption. We have larger issues to look into.
-Sonia Roy
Political Science ( Honours)
Third Year.
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