Congress After Indira

by Zoya Hasan

Published 18 October 2012
In the aftermath of Indira Gandhi's assassination, the Congress party swept the polls in 1984. It reached its zenith with Rajiv Gandhi at the helm. However, due to shifts in Indian polity, economy, and society, this period marked the end of the Congress epoch. It was only a couple of decades later that the Congress was able to emerge as a dominant party again. How did the new Indian political landscape shape the development and the comeback of the Congress in the
2004 parliamentary elections in a coalition? What was the role of contemporary Congress politics, its policy, its organization, and leadership in the face of these challenges? Congress after Indira seeks answers to these questions. This richly researched and nuanced study of the Congress party advances
our understanding and perceptions of political structures, processes, and Indian politics.