Challenge of Political Succession Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru passed away in May . He had been unwell for more than a year. This had generated a lot of speculation about the usual question of succession: after Nehru, who? But in a newly independent country like India, this situation gave rise to a more serious question: after Nehru, what?
The second question arose from the serious doubts that many outsiders had about whether India’s democratic experiment will survive after Nehru. It was feared that like so many other newly independent countries, India too would not be able to manage a democratic succession. A failure to do so, it was feared, could lead to a political role for the army. Besides, there were doubts if the new leadership would be able to handle the multiple crises that awaited a solution.
The 1960s were labelled as the ‘dangerous decade’ when When France or Canada have similar problems, no one talks about failure or disintegration. Why are we under this constant suspicion?