India’s Politics of Splits: From Congress to Trinamool

India’s political history is, in many ways, a history of splits and realignments. Since Independence, there has hardly been a major political party that has remained untouched by internal factionalism, personal ambitions or ideological differences. The process that began with the Congress split in 1969 found another expression in the Trinamool Congress split in 2026.

Every split has had multiple causes—sometimes a leadership struggle, sometimes an ideological conflict, and at other times an electoral strategy. The Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India and the rules of the Election Commission have attempted to place such splits within a legal framework, although in practice each rupture has produced new political equations.

One of the most significant events in the history of political party splits in India was the 1969 Congress split. The conflict between then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the ‘Syndicate’ faction led by Congress president S. Nijalingappa reached its peak during the 1969 presidential election. Against the Congress party’s official candidate, Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, Indira Gandhi supported independent candidate V. V. Giri, in what was seen as a direct violation of party discipline.

On November 12, 1969, the Congress Working Committee, under Nijalingappa’s leadership, expelled Indira Gandhi from the party. The Congress subsequently split formally into two factions—Congress (O), or ‘Congress (Organisation)’, and Congress (R), or ‘Congress (Requisitionists)’. The split was not merely an internal crisis within the Congress; it altered the course of Indian politics. Indira Gandhi’s Congress (R) went on to secure a sweeping victory in the subsequent election, and the 1971 election marked the beginning of a new era in Indian politics.

The Congress subsequently split several more times. In 1978, Indira Gandhi formed Congress (I), breaking away from the parent organisation. In 1999, Sharad Pawar, P. A. Sangma and Tariq Anwar formed the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Earlier, in 1998, Mamata Banerjee had left the Congress to form the Trinamool Congress.

In 1977, following the Emergency, several opposition parties came together to form the Janata Party with the objective of defeating the Congress. But this alliance did not last long. By 1979-80, the Janata Party had split, with leaders such as Charan Singh, Raj Narain and Jagjivan Ram heading different factions. The split gave rise to the Janata Party (Secular), Lok Dal and, eventually, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

On April 6, 1980, the BJP formally emerged with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as its president, largely as an outcome of the split within the Janata Party. In 1989, the Janata Dal came to power, but within two years the party split following the political manoeuvring of Chandra Shekhar and Devi Lal. In 1992, Mulayam Singh Yadav formed the Samajwadi Party (SP), while in 1994 George Fernandes and Nitish Kumar founded the Samata Party.

In 1999, the Janata Dal formally split, when one faction decided to join the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). This chain of splits eventually led to the emergence of parties such as the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Janata Dal (United), Janata Dal (Secular), Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP).

In 1964, the Communist Party of India (CPI) split over ideological differences linked to the Soviet-China conflict. The split resulted in the formation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPI(M). The division was significant not only in India but also within the international communist movement. CPI and CPI(M) have since continued as separate political entities, although they have occasionally worked together in electoral alliances.

In 1972, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) split after its treasurer, M. G. Ramachandran (MGR), was expelled on charges of ‘anti-party activities’. On October 18, 1972, MGR formally founded the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam AIADMK. The split marked the beginning of the DMK-AIADMK rivalry that would shape Tamil Nadu politics for more than two decades.

In June 2022, 39 legislators led by Eknath Shinde rebelled against the Shiv Sena, resulting in the party’s split and the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government. The Election Commission subsequently recognised the Shinde faction as the ‘real Shiv Sena’ and allotted it the ‘bow and arrow’ symbol. The Uddhav Thackeray faction contested elections as Shiv Sena (UBT), with the ‘flaming torch’ symbol.

The Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, introduced through the 52nd Constitutional Amendment in 1985, is commonly known as the anti-defection law. Under the law, a Member of Parliament or legislator can be disqualified if they voluntarily give up membership of their political party or vote against the party’s direction. There is, however, an important exception: if two-thirds of a party’s members agree to merge with another party, they are protected from disqualification.

One major criticism of the law is that, in cases of party splits, the numerical strength of legislators is treated as the decisive factor rather than the broader ‘popular mandate’. During the 2022 Shiv Sena dispute, the Supreme Court questioned why the Election Commission had not allowed both factions to retain separate symbols and contest elections under their own identities.

After a party splits, one of the biggest battles is over the party’s name and election symbol. This is because Indian voters often identify political parties through their symbols. When the Election Commission determines that a party has split, it may freeze the disputed name and symbol and allot separate names and symbols to the rival factions until a final decision is reached.

In the Shiv Sena dispute, the Election Commission treated the numerical strength of legislators as the principal criterion in recognising the Shinde faction as the ‘real Shiv Sena’. A similar approach was followed in the NCP dispute. In the case of the Trinamool Congress, however, the Commission has not yet taken a final decision; for the time being, the ‘twin grass-and-flower’ symbol has been frozen and separate symbols have been allotted to the two factions.

The history of political party splits in India is not a series of isolated incidents; it is an integral part of the country’s democratic and political evolution. From the Congress split of 1969 to the Trinamool Congress split of 2026, these episodes illustrate how leadership struggles, ideological differences and electoral calculations can challenge party unity. The Tenth Schedule and the Election Commission’s rules have attempted to place such conflicts within a legal framework, but questions remain in political practice over how ‘majority’ should be defined and how the ‘real party’ should be determined. The politics of political splits is unlikely to disappear; rather, it may continue to take new forms with every electoral cycle.