"Satta ka khel toh chalta rahega, sarkarein aayengi, jayengi, partian banengi, bigrengi, magar yeh desh rehna chahiye, yeh desh ka loktantra rehna chahiye (Power play will continue, governments will come and go, parties will be formed and broken, but this country must live on, its democracy must live on)."
Exactly 29 years ago, on May 28, 1996, BJP stalwart Atal Bihari Vajpayee resigned as Prime Minister after just 13 days in power when his government lost the majority in the Lok Sabha. This is the shortest stint for a Prime Minister, matched by two 13-day stints of Gulzarilal Nanda, who served as Acting Prime Minister after the deaths of former Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Lal Bahadur Shastri.
Mr Vajpayee's powerful speech, during which he said that while governments and parties may change, India's democracy must live on, is rated among the most articulate speeches in our parliamentary history. As fate would have it, Mr Vajpayee would return as Prime Minister again, twice.
1996 Election: The Ascent
The 1996 Lok Sabha election was fought after landmark events in Indian political history. The PV Narasimha Rao government had ushered in massive economic reforms through liberalisation in 1991, but the episode that would decide the fate of the government -- and the country -- would take place the next year.
On December 6, 1992, the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya was demolished as right-wing outfits stressed that the mosque was built at the birthplace of Lord Ram. The demolition polarised the country and the BJP benefited from this. In the 1996 election, the saffron party won 161 seats in Lok Sabha, becoming the single largest party. The Congress won 140 seats, followed by the HD Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (46) and CPM (32). Mr Vajpayee staked a claim to form the government and took the oath on May 15.
The Resignation
On May 28, Mr Vajpayee conceded that he did not have the majority to continue in power. "We have been given the chance as the single largest party because people wanted a change," the BJP legend said in Lok Sabha.
Mr Vajpayee also made it clear that he would never break the BJP to cling on to power. "During the course of this debate, a remark has been made repeatedly that personally Vajpayee is a good leader but his party is not good... If I am offered power with a new alliance at the cost of a split in my party, I would be the last person even to remotely entertain such an idea."
He also said there should be no polarisation in the country on communal or caste lines. "Governments will come and go but the nation will always remain there. The democracy of this country will live forever. Has it not become a difficult task in the present atmosphere?" he asked, targeting his rivals.
The Aftermath
Following Mr Vajpayee's resignation, the Congress too declined to form the government, but extended support to the United Front -- a coalition of non-Congress and non-BJP parties -- to keep the BJP out of power. This started a search for the next Prime Minister. Former Prime Minister VP Singh was approached, but he refused. Another choice was Left veteran Jyoti Basu, but the CPM decided that with a coalition of so many parties, Mr Basu wouldn't get a free hand. Jyoti Basu later called the Left party's decision to pass over the Prime Minister's seat a "historic blunder". Eventually, Janata Dal leader HD Deve Gowda was chosen as the Prime Minister candidate. The Karnataka leader had to quit the post less than a year later, as the Congress withdrew its support. IK Gujral became the next Prime Minister, but he too had to resign in less than a year.
The Return - And Another Test
In the 1998 general election, the BJP emerged as the single largest party again. Mr Vajpayee led a rainbow coalition into power. The following months saw landmark events. India conducted the Pokhran nuclear test and also defeated Pakistan in the Kargil conflict. Months after the conflict, however, another phase of uncertainty began. The J Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK had been unsuccessfully pushing the Vajpayee government to dismiss the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, led by her arch-rival M Karunanidhi. When Mr Vajpayee refused, AIADMK withdrew its support and the government lost the majority in the House.
In the 1999 election, the BJP again scored the top rank and Mr Vajpayee returned to power at the head of another coalition government. This time, he would complete his term, becoming the first non-Congress Prime Minister to do so.
