The year 2023 saw some significant political developments that will continue to shape the course of the world’s largest democracy in times to come.
Here's a look at the 10 biggest political events of the year:
1) BJP scores landslide victory in the semi-final
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) scored landslide victories in the Hindi belt states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan Assembly elections whose results were declared on December 3. While BJP ousted Congress from power in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, it retained its position in Madhya Pradesh.
The election re-emphasised BJP’s dominance in western and central India. The two regions provide a major bulk of MPs to the saffron party. Brand Modi is still impregnable. The results underline his electoral appeal, even in local contests. The results showcase the inherent strengths of the BJP’s cadre and its ability to reach the last mile with the voter, which matters in close contests. A tribal surge for the BJP has been noticed in all the three northern states. This reversed the traditional voting pattern.
Voters seem to have rejected the nationwide caste survey idea initiated by Nitish Kumar, with Rahul Gandhi strongly advocating it. The victories in the three states have given a booster to the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in 2024.
2) First Congress CM in Telangana
Telangana got its first non-BRS chief minister after Congress leader Revanth Reddy took oath at the LB Stadium in Hyderabad. MLA Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka was sworn in as the deputy chief minister, creating history as the first Dalit person to occupy the post.
The grand ceremony was held in the presence of senior party functionaries like Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge, Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, former president Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar, and Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, among others.
The Congress Party strikes a historical win in the Telangana Assembly polls by winning 64 seats, bringing an end to the nearly 10-year-old rule of the K. Chandrasekhar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) party. The Congress garnered 64 seats while BRS won 39 seats. BJP managed to win eight seats, AIMIM won seven seats and one seat was won by CPI.
Telangana Congress Party Chief Revanth Reddy, who won from Kodangal constituency with a margin of over 32,000 votes, defeated his nearest BRS rival Patnam Narender Reddy
The Indian National Congress is set to form its government in Telangana as it crosses the majority mark of 60 seats, as per the Election Commission of India (ECI).
3) Bihar caste survey
Nitish Kumar led the Bihar government in conducting the Bihar caste survey, popularly known as Bihar Jaati Adharit Ganana this year. At the time of release of this report, both Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav termed the occasion as a “historic moment.”
“Today, on Gandhi Jayanti, we all have become witness to this historic moment. Despite many conspiracies by the BJP and legal hurdles, the Bihar government released the caste-based survey,” the former Bihar CM Lalu Yadav posted on X.
The survey says that the Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs), Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) from 85% of Bihar’s population. Out of this, OBCs and EBCs together constitute 63% of the state’s total population.
The ‘forward castes’ or General category, at 2.03 crore, form only 15.5% of Bihar’s population, the survey indicated.
CM Kumar has always been vocal about a caste survey, calling it an important instrument for social justice. He also wrote to PM Modi demanding a caste survey. The socialist leader is said to be a believer in the economic and social empowerment of the backward classes.
The move is termed as “masterstroke” by the Mandalite socialist parties against the Hindutva consolidation project of the BJP. The caste survey resurrects the politics of reservation in the politically crucial Hindi heartland before the general elections in 2024.
This move further aims to check the BJP, which has been making inroads among the OBC and Dalit communities over the last few years while the Opposition is trying to win back its lost ground.
4) Formation of ‘INDIA’
India’s 26 Opposition parties came together in July this year to form INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) to oust Narendra Modi's government from power in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The Opposition parties argued that they had formed an alliance to challenge the BJP, which is assaulting the character of the republic. They further pledged to "safeguard the idea of India as enshrined in the Constitution." Soon after the announcement of the coalition, the alliance said it would focus on fighting rising prices and unemployment.
The alliance managed to capture headlines for some time. However, differences soon emerged.
During the recently-concluded Assembly elections, a lack of coordination was seen among the members of this alliance. The alliance failed to put forward a joint candidate against the BJP.
Additionally, two key members of the alliance — TMC and AAP — pitched for Malliarjun Kharge as the alliance’s prime ministerial candidate — a move seen as a snub the Gandhis.
5) Inauguration of new Parliament building
Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially inaugurated the new Parliament building on May 28, 2023. The demand for a replacement has been overdue for quite some time.
The Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha halls now boast an increased capacity of 888 seats and 384 seats, respectively. This enlargement facilitates joint sessions of Parliament with a combined seating capacity of up to 1,272 seats.
The proceedings of the House commenced on September 19, 2023. It was marked by PM Narendra Modi leading a walkathon of MPs from the old building to the new Parliament building.
The British era building has concerns about its structural safety with the seismic classification for the region being Seismic Zone IV. Also, the old structure suffers from limited seating capacity for members of Parliament (MPs), insufficient workspace for key government figures, outdated communication systems, safety issues among others.
However, one of the most glorious days in Indian history was not untouched by controversies. A total of 20 Opposition parties decided to boycott the inauguration ceremony, alleging the sidelining of President Droupadi Murmu.
6) NCP split
In a significant development that could impact the politics of the country's second-largest state in terms of population, NCP Leader Ajit Pawar split the party on July 2, 2023, to align with the ruling BJP-Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena government.
Pawar was inducted into the government as another deputy chief minister soon after he switched his loyalty with 40 other MLAs.
Soon after the split, Ajit Pawar also staked a claim to the party’s name and election symbol before the Election Commission. He has changed all the office bearers and made fresh appointments in a bid to strengthen his hold over the party.
Sharad Pawar has staked claim over the NCP party and its assets, asserting that he is the founder of the 25-year-old party.
“There was an ideological difference within the NCP which had nothing to do with the Pawar family,” said Baramati MP and Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule on the split.
The Pawar family has long maintained that political separation will have no impact on family relationships.
7) Manish Sisodia arrested
Delhi’s former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia was arrested by the CBI on February 26 for his alleged wrongdoings over the liquor policy. The arrest forced him to resign from his post. AAP MP Sanjay Singh and former minister Satyendar Jain have also been jailed.
Soon after, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) also arrested Sisodia in a money laundering case after questioning him in Tihar.
The AAP government implemented the Delhi Excise Policy 2020-21 on November 17, 2021, but scrapped it in end-September 2022 amid allegations of corruption. As per the allegations, under the new excise policy, the profit margins of wholesalers were arbitrarily increased from 5% to 12%. The central investigation agencies further said the new policy resulted in cartelisation and those ineligible for liquor licences were favoured for monetary benefits.
8) Rahul Gandhi returns
Former Congress president and Lok Sabha MP from Wayanad Rahul Gandhi lost his lawmaker status in March after he was sentenced to two years in jail in the 'Modi surname defamation case.’
The case against Mr Gandhi was filed over comments he made about the Modi surname in a 2019 election rally. Speaking at a rally in Karnataka state in 2019, Gandhi had said: "Why do all these thieves have Modi as their surname? Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi, Narendra Modi."
Nirav Modi is a fugitive Indian diamond tycoon while Lalit Modi is a former chief of the Indian Premier League who has been banned for life by the country's cricket board.
However, later the Supreme Court stayed the decision in August, after which Rahul Gandhi once again became eligible as a member of Parliament.
Besides the Congress party, leaders of other Opposition parties celebrated his return. Some political observers say his reinstatement as a lawmaker is a boost for the INDIA bloc.
9) Congress victory in Karnataka
The Congress’ winning streak in the South began with Karnataka this year. In the Assembly elections held in May in Karnataka, the grand old party registered a landslide victory with 135 out of 224 seats in the Assembly. The Congress managed to bag a remarkable 43% vote share. In the outgoing Assembly, Congress had 69 seats.
The party, which battled infighting, managed to run a united campaign under the able leadership of D.K. Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah. However, differences did emerge after the victory, which required intervention from the highest level.
The BJP got only 66 seats in the elections, down from 118 seats in the outgoing Assembly. The party’s plan to replace popular leader B.S. Yeddyurappa fell flat on its face.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge dubbed the victory as “BJP mukt Dakshin Bharat (BJP free South India).” It is one of the rare moments for the Congress to hand over defeat to its arch-rival BJP in the Assembly elections.
After 35 years, we got such a thumping majority, which we should always remember," he added.
10) BJP wins Tripura again
Five years after it ended the 25-year-long run of the Left Front in the state, BJP has come to power once again in Tripura as it bagged a majority of 32 seats, followed by TIPRA Motha with 13 seats. Tribal party TIPRA Motha is led by royal scion Pradyot Debbarma.
CPI(M) got 11 seats and Congress bagged three, an improvement over last time when it had failed to open its account. Other Left parties — Forward Bloc, CPI and RSP — failed to open their account this time.
Manik Saha was awarded Tripura's top post again for his role in ensuring BJP’s victory. The former Congress leader, who joined the saffron party seven years back, defeated his former party's veteran leader Ashish Kumar Saha, by a margin of 1,257 votes from Bardowali.
From Saha joining the saffron party in 2016 to being made CM for the first time in 2022, it has been a short but upward journey for the 69-year-old dental surgeon-turned-politician.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) lost power in 2018 after winning only 16 seats last time around. This time they contested in 47 seats and won 11, with a vote share of 24.62%.
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