1991 Indian General Election (Gandhi Marat)

General elections were held in the Republic of India from 14 July to 28 August 1991 in five distinct phases to elect 586 members of the Lok Sabha, the lower chamber of the Indian Parliament. It was triggered after the assassination of the incumbent Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Despite Sonia Gandhi popularity and a generally positive period for the INC, the party was not able to secure an absolute majority of seats in parliament, therefore it opted to form a minority government with the support of minor parties. Elections were held separately in the Punjab Province due to local administrative failure. The election overall proved to be a key turning point in Indian history as Sonia Gandhi would remain as Prime Minister for renewed consecutive mandates, being the longest-serving since the country independence in 1950. The new administration would also approve reforms that resulted in massive social-economic changes, with India transitioning from a rump state-owned economy to a flourishing one that adhered to basic principles of neo-liberalism. Gandhi was also influenced by Thatcherism in the UK and Reaganomics in the US, despite the INC being a center-left party.

Despite the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, the ruling Indian National Congress was eager to present itsself with a new profile under the motto "new chairwoman, new party". Sonia Gandhi was elected as the INC lead on 30 May, and presented an ambitious program that consisted in the removal of the Licence Raj planned-economy system and the introduction of economic neo-liberalism, strongly influenced by other major Western powers.