H. D. Deve Gowda

Haradanahalli Dodde Deve Gowda (born 18 May 1933) was the eleventh Prime Minister of the Republic of India (1996–1997) and the 14th chief minister of the state of Karnataka (1994–1996). Indian political leader, prime minister of India (1996-97), b. Haradanahalli, Karnataka, S India. A member of a farming family of Vokkaliga caste, he was trained as a civil engineer and won his first seat in the Karnataka state assembly in 1962, rising to become Karnataka's chief minister. In the late 1970s Deve Gowda rose in the Janata party and was an important figure in reuniting its successor, the Janata Dal party, after the original group splintered in 1980. Widely regarded as a relatively unsophisticated man but a canny political pragmatist, Deve Gowda was an effective leader and was key in attracting to the party divergent castes and religious groups. When the Congress party was savaged in the 1996 general elections and Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao resigned, Deve Gowda became prime minister of a United Front coalition government after Indian nationalists failed to form a government. It was his first national office.

Related Topics:
18 May - 1933 - Prime Minister - India - 1996 - 1997 - Karnataka - 1994 - Vokkaliga

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H D Deve Gowda is from the Hassan district in the state of Karnataka. He joined the Congress Party in 1953 and remained in this party until 1962. He then contested elections as an independent candidate and was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly (Vidhana Sabha) in 1962. He was elected for the next three terms from the Holenarsipur constituency. From 1972 to 1976 and again from November 1976 to 1977, he was the leader of the opposition party in the legislative assembly.

Related Topics:
Hassan - Karnataka - Congress Party - 1953 - 1962

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At first an independent, then a member of the Congress party (see Indian National Congress ), he joined the wing that was opposed to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi 's faction when the group split (1969). In 1975 he was jailed for 18 months when he opposed Gandhi's state of emergency.

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In his next two terms in the legislative assembly, he was in charge of the Public Works and Irrigation portfolios respectively. He resigned from the cabinet in 1982 over the government's refusal to allocate more funds to the irrigation department.

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He was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Hassan constituency in 1991.

Related Topics:
Lok Sabha - Hassan

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He became the president of the Janata Dal at the state level in 1994, and became the 14th chief minister of Karnataka in the same year.

Related Topics:
Janata Dal - Karnataka

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In 1996, the Indian parliament did not see any single party achieve a clear majority. A coalition of political parties, the United Front, elected Deve Gowda as the leader; in a surprise development, Deve Gowda became the 11th Prime Minister of the Republic of India (June 1, 1996). He held the post until April 21, 1997. During his tenure as Prime Minister of India, he showed that he is a capable politician and did the best reforms for the farmers. There are claims that owing to his lack of pan-Indian support, he has not been given his right due by the Indian media.

Related Topics:
United Front - Prime Minister - India

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He is now the president of the Janata Dal (S) or JD-S political party in India and member of Parliament (MP) for the Hassan district in Karnataka. This party mainly runs on a plank of social justice and has substantial support in South-central Karnataka. The JD-S is currently in a coalition with the Congress party government lead by Dharam Singh. There are allegations of nepotism owing to his two children H.D. Revanna and H.D. Kumaraswamy being powerful ministers in this government. Recently there have been acrimonious arguments between the state government and the thriving IT industry over charges that nothing has been done by this government to improve the infrastructure in Bangalore.

Related Topics:
India - Karnataka - Congress party - Dharam Singh - Bangalore

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