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| Congress (India) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Indian National Congress |
| Native name | भारतीय राष्ट्रीय कांग्रेस |
| Abbreviation | INC |
| Leader | Mallikarjun Kharge |
| President | Mallikarjun Kharge |
| Founded | 28 December 1885 |
| Founder | Allan Octavian Hume |
| Headquarters | 24, Akbar Road, New Delhi |
Congress (India) is a major political party in India founded in 1885 as a platform for political dialogue during the British Raj. Over more than a century, it has played central roles in the Indian independence movement, the framing of the Constitution of India, and the politics of the Republic of India. The party has produced multiple Prime Ministers, participated in national and state legislatures, and influenced policies across sectors including diplomacy, social welfare, and industrial development.
The party traces origins to the 1885 founding meeting convened by Allan Octavian Hume in Bombay, initially attracting figures such as Dadabhai Naoroji, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, and Surendranath Banerjee. During the early 20th century debates on reform involved leaders like Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Annie Besant, and Mahatma Gandhi, with the latter shaping mass movements including the Non-Cooperation Movement, Civil Disobedience Movement, and the Quit India Movement. Post-1947 leadership under Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel oversaw integration of princely states after the Operation Polo and the adoption of the Five-Year Plans influenced by Nehruvian socialism. The party experienced major splits and reconfigurations: the 1969 schism involving Indira Gandhi versus the Syndicate, the 1975–1977 Emergency period, the 1977 electoral defeat associated with the Janata Party, and later factionalization leading to entities such as Indian National Congress (Organisation) and Nationalist Congress Party. The 1990s economic reforms commenced during a coalition era involving figures like P. V. Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh, while recent decades saw competition from parties such as the Bharatiya Janata Party and regional formations like the Trinamool Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, and Telugu Desam Party.
The party's formal organs include the All India Congress Committee, the Congress Working Committee, and state-level Pradesh Congress Committees with district and block units. Key positions include the President of the Indian National Congress, the AICC General Secretary, and the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha when applicable. The party maintains affiliated wings like the Indian Youth Congress, the National Students' Union of India, the Mahila Congress, and the Congress Seva Dal. Organizational dynamics have involved central leadership, state chief ministers such as Mamata Banerjee (though from another party), interim committees during leadership vacuums, and internal election processes influenced by senior figures including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Pranab Mukherjee.
Historically associated with Nehruvian socialism, the party endorsed state-led industrialization, secularism linked to the Constitution of India, and non-alignment in foreign policy exemplified by the Non-Aligned Movement. Policy shifts included economic liberalization under P. V. Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh, social welfare schemes such as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act initiatives conceptual successors, and legislation on affirmative action grounded in reservations and constitutional provisions. Its platform generally emphasizes pluralism reflected in engagement with communities like Dalits, Adivasis, religious minorities including Muslim organizations, and caste-based coalitions anchored in state-level alignments with parties such as the Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal.
The party dominated national elections from independence through the 1960s and returned to power in various coalitions across the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, producing Prime Ministers including Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, P. V. Narasimha Rao, and Manmohan Singh. Major electoral setbacks occurred in 1977 after the Emergency and in 2014 and 2019 when the Bharatiya Janata Party won decisive majorities under Narendra Modi. State-level performances have varied: strongholds in Kerala, Punjab, and parts of Karnataka and Rajasthan alternated with losses to regional parties such as the Shiv Sena, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad-aligned formations, and alliances like the United Progressive Alliance challenged by the National Democratic Alliance.
Key historical leaders include Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and P. V. Narasimha Rao. Prominent statesmen associated with the party include Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, C. Rajagopalachari, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Gulzarilal Nanda, Charan Singh (who later formed other entities), and Pranab Mukherjee. Organizational leaders and ministers have encompassed figures such as Arjun Singh, S. M. Krishna, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and others who led election campaigns, cabinet ministries, and state administrations.
The party has led and participated in coalitions including the United Progressive Alliance and formed electoral pacts with regional parties like the Trinamool Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Nationalist Congress Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, and Telugu Desam Party at different times. Internal factionalism has produced groupings around personalities—historically the Syndicate, the Indira faction, and later alignments linked to families such as the Gandhi family and institutional networks around leaders like Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. Regional power centers emerged in states under chief ministers like M. Karunanidhi (though of another party) shaping local alliances and electoral strategies.
The party has faced controversies including allegations related to the Emergency suspension of civil liberties, corruption scandals linked to schemes investigated under bodies like the Central Bureau of Investigation and cases such as the Bofors scandal, disputes over land and mining exemplified by inquiries into leaders, and criticisms of dynastic politics associated with the Gandhi family. Policy criticisms include debates over economic reforms under P. V. Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh, handling of communal incidents such as the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, and management of coalition politics leading to instability in periods including the late 1990s and early 2000s.