India's 7th General Elections: The Forgiving Electorate

Abstract

Democracy and authoritarianism are but two aspects of Indian political culture. Both have their roots in Indian society and history, and many Indians probably would like to have a government which combines both. The majority of the Indian electorate voted Mrs. Gandhi out of power in 1977, because her authoritarian leadership lacked respect for democratic values. The same electorate voted her back to power, because the government of the Janata Party had restored democracy, but showed weak leadership .