1997 in India
Encyclopedia
Events in the year 1997 in the Republic of India
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India
India , 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 with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
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Incumbents
- President of IndiaPresident of IndiaThe President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India, as well as the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. President of India is also the formal head of all the three branches of Indian Democracy - Legislature, Executive and Judiciary...
– Shankar Dayal SharmaShankar Dayal SharmaShankar Dayal Sharma was the ninth President of India serving from 1992 to 1997. Prior to his presidency, Dr Sharma had been the eighth Vice President of India, serving under President Ramaswamy Venkataraman...
until July 25, K. R. NarayananK. R. NarayananKocheril Raman Narayanan , also known as K. R. Narayanan, was the tenth President of India. He was the first Dalit, and the first Malayali, to have been President.... - Prime Minister of IndiaPrime Minister of IndiaThe Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
– H. D. Deve GowdaH. D. Deve GowdaHaradanahalli Doddegowda Deve Gowda was the 11th Prime Minister of India and the 14th chief minister of the state of Karnataka ....
until April 21, Inder Kumar GujralInder Kumar GujralInder Kumar Gujral served as the 12th Prime Minister of India. Gujral was the first PM to govern exclusively from the Rajya Sabha; , only he and Manmohan Singh have done so.-Early life:...
January to June
- 7 February - An alliance of SikhSikhA Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
and HinduHinduHindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
nationalist parties wins a resounding victory over the CongressIndian National CongressThe Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
in state assembly elections in Punjab. - 28 February - The government is strengthened by a daring, market friendly budget.
- 13 March – India's Missionaries of Charity chooses Sister NirmalaSister NirmalaSister Nirmala succeeded Mother Teresa as Superior General of the Missionaries of Charity in March 1997.She was born Nirmala Joshi into a Brahmin family in Ranchi . Her parents were Hindu Brahmins from Nepal...
to succeed Mother TeresaMother TeresaMother Teresa , born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu , was a Roman Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India, in 1950...
as its leader. - 19 March - The Bahujan Samaj PartyBahujan Samaj PartyThe Bahujan Samaj Party is a centrist national political party in India with socialist leanings. It was formed to chiefly represent Bahujans , referring to people from the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Castes as well as Buddhists. The party claims to be inspired by the...
(BSP), a powerful low-caste party, deserts its alliance with Congress in Uttar PradeshUttar PradeshUttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
to form a government with the Bharatiya Janata PartyBharatiya Janata PartyThe Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
(BJP). - 30 March - Congress withdraws support from the United Front, accusing Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda of poor leadership.
- 21 April - Inder Kumar GujralInder Kumar GujralInder Kumar Gujral served as the 12th Prime Minister of India. Gujral was the first PM to govern exclusively from the Rajya Sabha; , only he and Manmohan Singh have done so.-Early life:...
, a new leader acceptable to Congress, is sworn in as prime minister.
July to September
- 3 July - Laloo Prasad Yadav is ousted as president of the Janata DalJanata DalJanata Dal is an Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal, Congress, and the Jan Morcha led by V. P...
party. On July 5 he announces the formation of a new party called Rashtriya Janata DalRashtriya Janata DalThe Rashtriya Janata Dal is a political party in India, based in the state of Bihar. The party was founded in 1997 by Laloo Prasad Yadav. The party came about as a result of Lalu Prasad Yadav, ex-president of Janata Dal, being evicted by Sharad Yadav, the then president, on corruption charges ...
. - 14 July - K.R. Narayanan is elected president, defeating T.N. Seshan.
- 25 July - Laloo Prasad Yadav resigns as chief minister of Bihar after a warrant for his arrest, on charges relating to an animal fodder scandal, had been issued. He names his wife, Rabri DeviRabri DeviRabri Devi served three terms as the Chief Minister, of Bihar, India, as a member of the Rashtriya Janata Dal political party, between 1997 and 2005...
, as his successor and the first woman chief minister of Bihar. - 25 July – K.R. Narayanan is sworn in as India's 10th president and the first member of the Dalit caste to hold this office.
- 16 August - Krishan KantKrishan KantKrishan Kant was the tenth Vice President of India from 1997 until his death.Kant's first brush with politics came when he plunged into the Quit India movement, while he was still a student in Lahore. He took part in the Indian Independence Movement as a youth and continued to be involved in...
is elected vice president. - 5 September – Mother Theresa of Calcutta dies of heart failure in KolkataKolkataKolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
. - 9 September - 49 senior Hindu politicians and religious figures are charged with conspiracy and incitement to riot for their alleged role in the sacking of the Babri mosqueBabri MosqueThe Babri Mosque , was a mosque in Ayodhya, a city in the Faizabad district of Uttar Pradesh, on Ramkot Hill . It was destroyed in 1992 when a political rally developed into a riot involving 150,000 people, despite a commitment to the Indian Supreme Court by the rally organisers that the mosque...
at Ayodhya in 1992.
October to December
- 12 October-18 October - Elizabeth II pays a state visit to India.
- 21 October - Violence erupts in the Uttar PradeshUttar PradeshUttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
state assembly during a vote of confidence on the Hindu nationalist state government. Deputies trade blows on the floor of the assembly in the state capital of LucknowLucknowLucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....
and hurl chairs and microphones at each other. A dozen lawmakers are injured and several journalists are also hurt. The BJP's one-month-old government headed by chief minister Kalyan SinghKalyan SinghKalayan Singh is an Indian politician from the state of Uttar Pradesh. He has served 3 times as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.-Role in demolition of Babri Masjid:...
lost key support in a hung assembly on October 19 when the Bahujan Samaj Party withdrew its support, plunging India's most populous state into a political crisis. The government wins the confidence vote after opposition members walk out in protest against the violence in the hall. Federal rule over the state is imposed the same day, but later canceled. - 20 November - Congress threatens to withdraw support for the United Front if it does not drop the regional Dravida Munnetra KazhagamDravida Munnetra KazhagamDravida Munnetra Kazhagam is a state political party in the states of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, India. It is a Dravidian party founded by C. N. Annadurai as a breakaway faction from the Dravidar Kazhagam headed by Periyar...
(DMK) party from the government after the DMK was linked by an investigative panel to Sri Lankan separatists blamed for the killing of Rajiv GandhiRajiv GandhiRajiv Ratna Gandhi was the sixth Prime Minister of India . He took office after his mother's assassination on 31 October 1984; he himself was assassinated on 21 May 1991. He became the youngest Prime Minister of India when he took office at the age of 40.Rajiv Gandhi was the elder son of Indira...
. - 26 November - The United Front rejects the Congress demand to expel the DMK.
- 28 November - Prime Minister Gujral resigns after the Congress party withdrew support from his government.
- 4 December - The president orders mid-term elections.
- 29 December - Sonia GandhiSonia GandhiSonia Gandhi is an Italian-born Indian politician and the President of the Indian National Congress, one of the major political parties of India. She is the widow of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi...
, Italian-born widow of Rajiv Gandhi, announces her decision to join the Congress election campaign.
Deaths
- 9 December - K. Shivaram KaranthK. Shivaram KaranthKota Shivaram Karanth was a major Kannada writer, social activist, environmentalist, Yakshagana artist, film maker and thinker. He was described as the "Rabindranath Tagore of Modern India who has been one of the finest novelists-activists since independence" by Ramachandra Guha...
, writerWriterA writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, social activist, environmentalistEnvironmentalistAn environmentalist broadly supports the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that seeks to improve and protect the quality of the natural environment through changes to environmentally harmful human activities"...
, YakshaganaYakshaganaYakshagana is a musical theater popular in the coastal and Malenadu regions of Karnataka, India. Yakshagana is the recent scholastic name for what are known as kēḷike, āṭa, bayalāṭa, bayalāṭa, daśāvatāra . It is believed to have evolved from pre-classical music and theatre during Bhakti movement...
artist, movie maker and thinkerThinkerThinker may refer to:*Intellectual, one who tries to use his or her intellect to work, study, reflect, speculate on, or ask and answer questions with regard to a variety of different ideas...
(b.19021902 in India-Births:*10 October - K. Shivaram Karanth, writer, social activist, environmentalist, Yakshagana artist, movie maker and thinker .-Deaths:*4 July - Swami Vivekananda, chief disciple of Ramakrishna and founder of Ramakrishna Mission ....
). - Anup KumarAnup Kumar (actor)-Early life:Anup Kumar was born on 17 June 1930 in Kolkata. His real name was Satyen Das . His parents were Dhirendra Nath Das, who was a singer, and Bijoya Das. He passed his Matriculation at the Calcutta Jubilee Institution. In 1986, he married actress Aloka Ganguly.-Acting career:Anup Kumar...
, actor (b.19321932 in IndiaEvents in the year 1932 in India.-Events:*3 January - British arrest and intern Mohandas Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel.*16 May - Massive riots between Hindus and Muslims in Bombay - thousands dead and injured....
).
See also
- Bollywood films of 1997Bollywood films of 1997A list of films produced by the Bollywood film industry based in Mumbai in 1997:-Highest grossing:The top ten grossing films at the Indian Box Office in 1997.-1997:-External links:* at the Internet Movie Database...