In school we were always taught about freedom movement and about great Indian leaders. But never about Indian politicians. Today let’s look at various leaders and how they altered the political fabric of India and in turn changed the future of India.
Let’s look at their political ideology and their personal believes because this will help you develop your own believes which is essential to live a sane life.
Table of Contents
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
- Sardar Patel
- Periyar
- Indira Gandhi
- LK Advani
- PV Narsimha Rao
- Narendra Modi
- Conclusion on Indian politicians
- FAQ on some Indian Politicians
Mahatma Gandhi
Born as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi he is considered the father of our nation [Most importantly, Subash Chandra Bose was the first person to name he as the father of our nation].
He was an ardent Hindu who became the most followed leader of the freedom movement. He advocated Ahimsa [Nonviolence] and always considered the sacred Geeta above all.
Well I do not agree with his ideology of attaining freedom only through dialogue however I agree that the prefix Mahatma [Great soul] is apt for him.
Many small states together formed India in the pre-independence era. But mahatma Gandhi change it all.
Cast system was ever pervading and Hindu Muslim unity was hurt by the atrocities of some vicious Mughal ruler and even the British.
But one man who united such a diverse country not by polarizing a certain community but through peaceful dialogues.
Indian Politicians, even today ask for votes on the basis of cast and religion. But this man through various movements like satyagraha and non-cooperation opposed the British and united the country at once.
He never hid his Hindu identity to appease the Muslims but rather propagated it with pride. However, Indian Muslims loved him
The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
A man of many controversies. Yet the one who left a very important mark on the political history of our country. Above all, we call him the father of Hindutva.
He denounced the cast system and did not find eating non vegetarian food as an evil practice.
In the book The Indian War of Independence he argued that the revolt of 1857 was not a Sepoy mutiny but the first war of Independence.
He campaigned for a Hindu Rashtra.
He argued that Hindus and Muslims are antagonistic. In addition, he thought that Muslims cannot be as loyal as Hindus are to India.
Well, you may ask why?…
According to his philosophy, only people who considered India as its Punya Bhumi [Holy land]and Pitru Bhumi [father Land] could be loyal to India.
It is quite clear that Muslims consider Mecca as their holy land. But Hindus, their ancestor lived here and preached their philosophy in India. And also because they were born and brought up in India hence making them loyal.
I personally do not completely agree with Savarkar’s ideology but certain people in India are getting influenced by the Wahhabi movement.
Hence causing both political and social unrest.
Sardar Patel
An Indian politician who was the first home minister of India.
Patel integrated 562 princely staes therefore he is known as the Iron Man of India. In fact, the way he integrated Junagarh and Hyderabad to India shows his political brilliance.
Patel asked Indian army to occupy Junagarh because Pakistan was keen on seizing it.
But his true brilliance reflects in the fact that he conducted a plebiscite.
Only 91 out of 201457 people voted in favour of Pakistan hence guarding us from international pressure.
In my humble opinion Patel was not as passionate with integrating Kashmir in India as much he was with Hyderabad. After all, the geographical location of the former explains the decision.
Operation polo was the name given to the operation that led to the integration of Hyderabad.
This was done as peacefully as it could be done because he always advocated for peace. He was a political disciple of Mahatma Gandhi, however this does not mean that he would shy away from force.
He was ready to hand over Kashmir to Pakistan if they agreed to give Junagarh and Kashmir to India.
But when Jinnah refused to accept the referendum of Junagarh, he was confident that Pakistan’s intentions were evil and thus ordered Indian army into Kashmir.
The reason he was ready with Kashmir being a part of Pakistan was because of the geographical location and the prominent Muslim majority of the state. He feared political unrest of the state on integration with India.
Most Indian politicians consider him a modern day chanakya. After 70 plus Independence of India I can certainly say that he was man of great political vision and could accurately forecast the position of India.
Periyar
I believe the most influential person in Tamil Nadu would be Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy aka Periyar.
Above all, he is considered the father of the Dravidian movement. He was one of the prominent members of the Justice Party.
Justice party believed that India belonged to Dravidians. Moreover they called them self true Dravidians.
Periyar was in support of making a different country for Tamilians called Dravida Nadu.
In fact, he had conversation with Jinnah for providing them support to create Dravida Nadu. Justice party was pro-British compared to the Indian national congress.
Periyar also worked for women’s rights but he married Maniammai when she was 31 and he was 72. Which led to a lot of controversy.
He has been accused by many being anti Hindu by many Indian politicians. C Rajagopalachari made Hindi a compulsory language but Periyar protested and hence the order had to be withdrawn.
Indira Gandhi
Some say she was the most courageous Indian politician that the world has seen. but the days of emergency changed it all.
Indira led the country well in the 1972 war and dealt with Richard Nixon with utmost courage.
But her political career was challenged because of a supreme court judgment which led to emergency. Books in general portray her very austere in the way she dealt with politics.
She was a true socialist, who believed in Nehru’s socialist policies.
From Nationalizing Banks to bringing places of worship under the control of government, all socialist policies were passed by her.This is because, Indira enjoyed a lot of power.
However she felt resistance when the supreme court of India reversed some bills she passed Read the Keashvananda Bharti vs the state of Kerala.
In the start of her career she was advised by PN Haksar, but eventually by her son Sanjay Gandhi who is said to be the mater planner of the emergency.
Very few Indian politicians could leave the legacy she had left!
LK Advani
Advani is often credited to bring the Hindutva movement at forefront. Atal Bihari Vajpayee came to power because of his efforts .
Above all he made BJP the political face of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.
In 1990 he led the rath yatra to Ayodhya, advocating the construction of the Ram temple. But, he was stopped and arrested by then Bihar chief minister Lalu Yadav.
A turning point came in his career when in 1992.He with Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti were accused to instigate a crowd which led to the demolition of the Babri masjid at the disputed land.
This portrayed him as a Hindu extremist in the eyes of the Indian voters. He knew that if he stood for the post of prime minister then people would reject BJP as a Hindu nationalist party.
So he played a masterstroke when he pushed Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the prime minister candidate because he was considered much more liberal and secural. Guess what, this worked as soon BJP was voted to power.
But by 2014 Advani was sidelined by the BJP. In addition. he wasnt given a ticket in 2019. Mostly because of his age.
PV Narsimha Rao
Narasimha Rao was the 9th Prime minister of India. Rao brought the Economic reforms of India.
In 1991 when the foreign reserves of India had depleted. In fact, India could have survived only for 7 more days before going bankrupt.
But Narsimha Rao brought the LPG reformation on July 24, 1991[liberalization, privatization and globalization].
Narasimha Rao opened the Indian economy, which brought the grow rate to 7% in the next 5 years.
He is regarded by many the best prime minister the country has ever seen.A competent administrator whose reforms led into to become of the global leaders.Because of the LPG the License Raj in India came to an end, but this led to a lot of political enemies.
In fact, Indian politicians hated him for his reforms. That is why, he was accused of a lot of corruption charges.
For instance Harshad Mehta who was found guilty in the stock market manipulation, which led to a crash accused PV Narsimha Rao of taking a bribe of 1 Cr. However he was acquitted of all the charges.
Dr Swamy says that he was really sad and dejected because of the way his own party and other politicians treated him before death. In fact he was not even given the funeral he deserved.
Narendra Modi
Modi is the Current prime minister of India and the only BJP memeber who was elected for two consecutive terms.
Modi came to power in 2014 because of his “acche din” slogan.
His journey is really inspiring.In fact he was a Chai Wala who rose out of poverty to become the prime minister of India
Modi brings major reforms with him. From demonetization to abolishment of article 370 of the Indian constitution, all were his plans.
Part of few Indian politicians, who were ex membesr of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sang who’s Hindutva in my opinion is being integrated to India’s colourful culture.
Some of his critics argue that he did not stand up to his promise and he is just another facade. But in 2019 election he answered his critics with a landslide victory.
Modi is Controversial too. When he was the chief minister of Gujarat, India saw one the most deadly riots of the past decade.
He was accused of letting the Hindus vent off their anger owing to the Godhra train incident. In his defense, I would like to say that the supreme court of India had exonerated him of all the charges.
But his political ideology seems to work as the insurgency in Kashmir is slowly getting under control.
However, Modi’s critics attack him for his economic and cultural policies. I personally think that demonetization wasn’t a success.
Conclusion on Indian politicians
Of course, these are not the only influential figures in Indian Politics But in my humble opinion Studying them will form a base of all the political ideas and movements in India.
There is a smorgasbord of political ideas, but only a few could gather support like the above. They will be remembered for years to come as the men who shaped modern India.
FAQ on some Indian Politicians
Usually, the most influential Indian politician in the prime minister of a country. Narendra Modi is the current politician of India
Off course, like Kamraj there are many people who have influenced the above politicians. This is a list that will act as a guide to learn further
Politicians are leaders, but they are not infallible. Studying them will help one learn leadership lessons. Learning from them mistakes will shorten the learning curve.
They are the ideologies that led to political movements. Hindutva, socialism, communism etc are some examples of political ideologies
Well politics is difficult to predict. However, I personally think politicians like Tejasvi Surya, Aditya Thackeray will definitely lead the country in the future.
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