Spectrum Summary: Three Prime Ministers in Three Years (1996–1999) | History for UPSC CSE PDF Download

Between 1996 and 1999, there were a lot of changes in the government of India. In those years, three different people became the prime minister.

In 1996, a political party called the BJP won the most seats in the elections, but they didn't have enough seats to run the government alone. They needed support from other parties. Another group called the National Front wanted to replace the Congress or the BJP as the main party in charge.

During this time, the elections also showed that smaller parties from different states had a lot of support. This was the first time we saw how strong these regional and state parties could be in shaping the government.

Vajpayee’s Brief Term as Prime Minister

Atal Bihari Vajpayee

The BJP, the biggest political party, was asked by President Shankar Dayal Sharma to try and form a government because they had the most seats in the Lok Sabha. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the leader of the BJP, became the new Prime Minister of India. However, he knew he wouldn't win the confidence vote because no other party was ready to support the BJP.

After just 13 days, Vajpayee realized he couldn't continue as Prime Minister because no other party was ready to help the BJP. So, he made a big decision and resigned from his position.

United Front Government: Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral

After Vajpayee's government fell, the Congress, the second-largest party, said no to forming a government.

Deve Gowda Government (1996-97)

Deve Gowda

• The United Front, a group of around 13 parties including the National Front, Tamil Maanila Congress, DMK, and Asom Gana Parishad, chose Deve Gowda to lead the government. The Congress party was supported from the outside, and later, the Communists joined too.
• During its brief time, the government made agreements with China for confidence-building and with Bangladesh for the Ganga water. They decided not to sign the important Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).
• In April 1997, the government fell when the Congress party withdrew support. To avoid new elections, a compromise was made: the Congress agreed to support a government with a new leader.

Gujral Government (1997-98)

After Deve Gowda, L.K. Gujral became the new leader chosen by the United Front, and he started working as the prime minister on April 21, 1997.

L.K. Gujral

The Gujral Doctrine: The Gujral Doctrine was a set of principles or ideas that guided India's relations with its neighboring countries, especially those in South Asia. The main aim was to build friendly and cooperative relationships based on equality and non-interference.
It explained five main ideas: 

1. Generosity to Neighbors: India, under the Gujral Doctrine, decided not to expect anything in return from its neighbors like Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, and Sri Lanka. Instead, it offered assistance and support in good faith and trust.
2. Non-Use of Territory Against Each Other: The Doctrine emphasized that no country in South Asia should allow its land to be used against the interests of another country in the region. This meant that they should not support activities harmful to their neighbors.
3. Non-Interference in Internal Affairs: According to the Doctrine, no South Asian country should interfere in the internal matters of another. Each nation should respect the sovereignty and independence of others.
4. Respect for Territorial Integrity: The Doctrine stressed that all South Asian countries must respect each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty. This means recognizing and respecting the boundaries and independence of each nation.
5. Peaceful Dispute Resolution: The Gujral Doctrine emphasized that any disputes or issues between South Asian countries should be resolved through peaceful talks. Instead of resorting to conflict, nations should engage in bilateral negotiations to find solutions.

In short, the Gujral Doctrine aimed to foster a peaceful and cooperative atmosphere among South Asian nations, promoting understanding, trust, and good relations without expecting immediate benefits in return.

In terms of leadership, Gujral successfully maintained positive relations with the Congress, which provided support to his government from the outside. However, challenges emerged from within his party.  

Fodder Scam in Bihar - 

Fodder Scam: Lalu prasad Yadav

1. A significant development happened in Bihar. The Governor allowed a group called the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to look into a situation where the leader of the state, Lalu Prasad Yadav, was accused of being involved in corruption related to buying food for animals (Fodder Scam).
2.  Even though Yadav didn't want to quit his position, he later decided to leave his party. In July 1997, he started his own group called the Rashtriya Janata Dal. 
3. But, even after this change, his new group continued to support the United Front government, making sure it stayed strong and didn't fall apart.

Controversial Decision in Uttar Pradesh -

1. In the state of Uttar Pradesh, there was a major disagreement. The government led by Gujral believed it would be a good idea for the central government to take control (known as president's rule) because there was a significant amount of violence happening in the assembly. 
2. The assembly is where politicians gather to make important decisions for the state. This happened while Kalyan Singh, a leader from the BJP was in charge.
3. However, not everyone agreed with this plan. The President, who is like the leader of the entire country, and the Allahabad High Court, a crucial court in UP, both expressed that they didn't think imposing president's rule was the right decision. 
4. So, there was a significant conflict about who should have control in Uttar Pradesh, with different viewpoints on how to handle the situation.

Jain Commission Report -

1. RA team named the Jain Commission investigated the plans behind the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi and shared what they discovered. They found that the DMK party indirectly supported Tamil militants who were connected to the assassination. 
2. This news caused a lot of disagreement and noise in the meetings of the government. The Congress party, which was not happy with this revelation, wanted the members of the DMK party to leave the government. 
3. They thought it wasn't right to have them in important positions. However, the leader in charge at that time, Gujral, did not agree with this demand. He didn't want to remove the DMK members from the government.
4. In the end, on November 28, 1997, the Congress party decided they couldn't support Gujral's government anymore. This means they stopped helping and working together with the government led by Gujral.

General Elections of 1998

Sonia Gandhi contesting 1998 elections

New elections took place in February and March of 1998. Sonia Gandhi, the wife of Rajiv Gandhi, joined politics and campaigned for the Congress party. This was the fourth time, starting from 1989, that the election resulted in a situation where no single party had a clear majority.

The BJP once again got more seats than other parties, but they still didn't have enough seats to rule on their own. This time, the BJP formed a team with regional parties from states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, and West Bengal. By working together with these parties, the BJP got more seats and also gained new friends after the election.