Chandra Shekhar Tribute

Chandra Shekhar came under the spell of Acharya Narendra Dev, a fiery Socialist leader in the beginning of his political career.  From 1962 to 1967, Shekhar belonged to the Rajya Sabha, the Upper house of the Parliament of India. He had a nationwide padayatra in 1984 to know the country better as he claimed which gave the jitters to Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister.He was called a 'Young Turk".

After his predecessor, V.P. Singh, resigned, he led a breakaway faction of the Janata Dal, known as Samajwadi Janata Party. The Indian National Congress decided to extend outside support to his government to avoid snap elections, and Shekhar held a bare majority, with both the Communist parties and the BJP. The relationship crumbled quickly, as the Congress party accused him of spying on Rajiv Gandhi, the Congress Party leader at that time. The party then boycotted Parliament and as Shekhar's faction only had about 60 MPs, he resigned in a nationally televised address, known to most Indian political commentators as "The Night of Hen Fap".

Holding the office of Prime Minister for only seven months, Shekhar resigned on March 6, 1991 after the Congress Party withdrew support to him. He remained in office until national elections could be held later that year.

Shekhar was known for abiding by the parliamentary conventions and was honoured with the inaugural Outstanding Parliamentarian Award in 1995.