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Indian National Congress

The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party or simply the Congress, is a political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Empire in Asia and Africa.[a][30] From the late 19th century, and especially after 1920, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, the Congress became the principal leader of the Indian independence movement.[31] The Congress led India to independence from the United Kingdom,[b][32][c][33] and significantly influenced other anti-colonial nationalist movements in the British Empire.[d][30]

For similarly named parties, see Indian National Congress (disambiguation). Not to be confused with the Parliament of India.

Indian National Congress

INC

28 December 1885 (1885-12-28)

24, Akbar Road, New Delhi-110001[5]

Congress Sandesh
National Herald

55 million (2023)[7][8]

  Sky blue (customary)[26][27]

51 / 543
(512 MPs & 31 Vacant)
29 / 245
(240 MPs & 5 Vacant)[29]
676 / 4,036

(4030 MLAs & 5 Vacant)

(see complete list)
55 / 426

(390 MLCs & 36 Vacant)

(see complete list)
5 / 31
(28 States & 3 UTs)

The INC is a "big tent" party and sits on the centre of Indian political spectrum.[9][19][34] The Party held its first session in 1885 in Bombay where W.C. Bonnerjee presided over it.[35] After Indian independence in 1947, Congress emerged as a catch-all and secular party, dominating Indian politics for the next 50 years. The party's first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, led the Congress to support socialist policies by creating the Planning Commission, introducing Five-Year Plans, implementing a mixed economy, and establishing a secular state. After Nehru's death and the short tenure of Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi became the leader of the party. In the 17 general elections since independence, it has won an outright majority on seven occasions and has led the ruling coalition a further three times, heading the central government for more than 54 years. There have been six Prime Ministers from the Congress party, the first being Jawaharlal Nehru (1947–1964), and the most recent being Manmohan Singh (2004–2014). Since the 1990s, the Bhartiya Janta Party has emerged as the main rival of the Congress in both national and regional politics.


In 1969, the party suffered a major split, with a faction led by Indira Gandhi leaving to form the Congress (R), with the remainder becoming the Congress (O). The Congress (R) became the dominant faction, winning the 1971 general election by a huge margin. From 1975 to 1977, Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency in India, resulting in widespread oppression and abuses of power. Another split in the party occurred in 1979, leading to the creation of the Congress (I), which was recognized as the Congress by the Electoral Commission in 1981. Under Rajiv Gandhi's leadership, the party won a massive victory in the 1984 general elections, nevertheless losing the election held in 1989 to the National Front. The Congress then returned to power under P. V. Narasimha Rao, who moved the party towards an economically liberal agenda, a sharp break from previous leaders. However, it lost the 1996 general election and was replaced in government by the National Front. After a record eight years out of office, the Congress-led coalition known as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) under Manmohan Singh formed a government the 2004 general elections. Subsequently, the UPA again formed the government after winning the 2009 general elections, and Singh became the first Prime Minister since Indira Gandhi in 1971 to be re-elected after completing a full five-year term. However, in the 2014 general election, the Congress suffered a heavy defeat, winning only 44 seats of the 543-member Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Parliament of India). In the 2019 general election, the party again suffered defeat, winning only 52 seats in the Lok Sabha.


On social issues, it advocates secular policies that encourage equal opportunity, right to health, right to education, civil liberty, and support social market economy, and a strong welfare state. Being a centrist party, its policies predominantly reflected balanced positions including secularism, egalitarianism, and social stratification.[19] The INC supports contemporary economic reforms such as liberalisation, privatisation and globalization. A total of 61 people have served as the president of the INC since its formation. Sonia Gandhi is the longest-serving president of the party, having held office for over twenty years from 1998 to 2017 and again from 2019 to 2022 (as interim). Mallikarjun Kharge is the currently serving President. The district party is the smallest functional unit of Congress. There is also a Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC), present at the state level in every state. Together, the delegates from the districts and PCCs form the All India Congress Committee (AICC). The party is additionally structured into various committees and segments including the Working Committee (CWC), Seva Dal, Indian Youth Congress (IYC), Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), and National Students' Union of India (NSUI). The party holds the annual plenary sessions, at which senior Congress figures promote party policy.

(NSUI), the students' wing of the Congress.

National Students' Union of India

the party's youth wing.

Indian Youth Congress

the labour union.

Indian National Trade Union Congress

its women's division.

All India Mahila Congress

its peasant's wing.

Kisan and Khet Mazdoor Congress

Congress , its voluntary organisation.[314][315]

Seva Dal

All India Congress Minority Department, also referred to as Minority Congress is the minority wing of the Congress party. It is represented by the Pradesh Congress Minority Department in all the .[316]

states of India

Mahendra Prasad Singh (1981). . Abhinav Publications. ISBN 978-81-7017-140-9.

Split in a Predominant Party: The Indian National Congress in 1969

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Official website

at Curlie

Indian National Congress

web resources provided by GovPubs at the University of Colorado Boulder Libraries

Congress Party

at Internet Archive

Works by or about Indian National Congress

at the Encyclopædia Britannica

Indian National Congress