History Headline: 1971 and now, a tale of slogans | The Indian Express

History Headline: 1971 and now, a tale of slogans | The Indian Express

Written by Zoya Hasan |Published: April 14, 2019 12:29:26 am

Hasan is Professor Emerita, Jawaharlal Nehru University

History Headline: 1971 and now, a tale of slogans

Indira’s Garibi Hatao in the 1971 election was especially popular; it had great resonance across the nation, and was able to secure a landslide victory for the Congress. The Congress’s 2019 slogan, ‘Garibi par vaar, bahattar hazaar’, is a throwback to Indira Gandhi’s Garibi Hatao slogan of 1971.

Indira’s Garibi Hatao in the 1971 election was especially popular. (Express archive photo)

If elections are a festival of democracy, then catchy slogans are the lifeline of election campaigns. India’s electoral history is peppered with slogans that are worth remembering. A variety of pithy slogans stated in a range of political moments and speeches have frequently caught the imagination of the masses.