The
United Front was a coalition of political parties which formed
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
's government between 1996 and 1998. Led by the
Janata DalJanata Dal is an Indian political party which was formed through the merger of one of the major Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal and a group of Congressmen led by V.P. Singh.-Ascent to power:...
, their two
Prime MinistersThe Prime Minister of India is the head of government of the Republic of India, and head of the Council of Ministers, appointed by the President to assist the latter in the administration of the affairs of the executive in India...
were
H. D. Deve GowdaHaradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda was the 14th Prime Minister of the Republic of India and the 14th chief minister of the state of Karnataka ....
, and Inder Kumar Gujral.
Chandrababu Naidu served as the convenor of United Front.
India's general elections in 1996 brought about a fractured verdict. With the nationalist
Bharatiya Janata PartyThe Bharatiya Janata Party , translation: Indian People's Party) is a major political party in India, founded in 1980. The party is a strong force in Hindu nationalism and advocates conservative social policies, self-reliance, free market economics, foreign policy driven by a nationalist agenda,...
emerging as the largest party, with 161 seats, it was invited first to form a government.
The
United Front was a coalition of political parties which formed
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
's government between 1996 and 1998. Led by the
Janata DalJanata Dal is an Indian political party which was formed through the merger of one of the major Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal and a group of Congressmen led by V.P. Singh.-Ascent to power:...
, their two
Prime MinistersThe Prime Minister of India is the head of government of the Republic of India, and head of the Council of Ministers, appointed by the President to assist the latter in the administration of the affairs of the executive in India...
were
H. D. Deve GowdaHaradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda was the 14th Prime Minister of the Republic of India and the 14th chief minister of the state of Karnataka ....
, and Inder Kumar Gujral.
Chandrababu Naidu served as the convenor of United Front.
Background
India's general elections in 1996 brought about a fractured verdict. With the nationalist
Bharatiya Janata PartyThe Bharatiya Janata Party , translation: Indian People's Party) is a major political party in India, founded in 1980. The party is a strong force in Hindu nationalism and advocates conservative social policies, self-reliance, free market economics, foreign policy driven by a nationalist agenda,...
emerging as the largest party, with 161 seats, it was invited first to form a government. In 13 days,
Atal Bihari VajpayeeAtal Bihari Vajpayee , is an Indian statesman, who served as the eleventh Prime Minister of India. After a brief stint as Prime Minister in 1996, Vajpayee headed a coalition government from March 19, 1998 until May 19, 2004. He continued to served as an MP from Lucknow until 2009...
's government fell, and other parties met to come up with a solution. The Indian National Congress, with a substantial 140 seats, declined to head the government and along with the
Communist Party of India (Marxist)The Communist Party of India is a political party in India. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2008, CPI is leading the state governments in these three states. The party emerged out of a split from the Communist Party of India in 1964...
, agreed to extend outside support to a coalition with the
Janata DalJanata Dal is an Indian political party which was formed through the merger of one of the major Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal and a group of Congressmen led by V.P. Singh.-Ascent to power:...
at its head, named the "United Front". Other members of the front included the
Samajwadi PartySamajwadi Party is a political party in India. It is based in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It describes itself as a democratic socialist party...
,
Dravida Munnetra KazhagamDravida Munnetra Kazhagam is a regional political party in the state of Tamil Nadu in India. It also has presence in nearby union territory of Puducherry. It is a Dravidian party founded by C. N...
,
Asom Gana ParishadAsom Gana Parishad is a political party in Assam, India. The AGP was formed after the historic Assam Accord of 1985 when Prafulla Kumar Mahanta was elected as the youngest chief minister of the country...
,
Tamil Maanila CongressThe Tamil Maanila Congress was a political party in Tamil Nadu. It was started by G K Moopanar by breaking away from the Indian National Congress protesting the decision of the party high command to form an alliance with the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. After the death of Moopanar, his...
,
Communist Party of IndiaThe Communist Party of India is a political party in India. In the Indian communist movement, there are different views on exactly when the Indian communist party was founded. The date maintained as the foundation day by CPI is 26 december 1925...
and
Telugu Desam PartyTelugu Desam Party or TDP is a regional political party in India's Andhra Pradesh state. It was founded by former Telugu film star N.T. Rama Rao on March 29 1982. Mr...
.
With the approval of the Congress and CPI(M), the sitting Chief Minister of
KarnatakaKarnataka is a state in the southern part of India. It was created on November 1, 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act...
,
H. D. Deve GowdaHaradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda was the 14th Prime Minister of the Republic of India and the 14th chief minister of the state of Karnataka ....
, was asked to head the coalition as Prime Minister. His term was from June 1, 1996 - April 21, 1997. The Congress revoked its support to Gowda amidst discontent over communication between the coalition and the Congress. It compromised to support a new government under Inder Kumar Gujral, who was Prime Minister from April 21, 1997 - March 19, 1998. Following the collapse of his government, fresh elections were called.
Another
United Front in
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
n politics was the coalition that held two governments in
West BengalWest Bengal is a state in eastern India. With Bangladesh, which lies on its eastern border, the state forms the ethno-linguistic region of Bengal. To its northeast lie the states of Assam and Sikkim and the country Bhutan, and to its southwest, the state of Orissa...
1967-1971.