Shekhar, Chandra, (1927-2007), an Indian radical politician, served as prime minister of India from 1990 to 1991. He had been the president of the Janata Party from 1977 to 1988.
The son of a farmer, Shekhar was born on July 1, 1927, in the village of Ibrahimpatti, in what is now Uttar Pradesh state. After graduating with a master’s degree in political science in 1951, he joined the socialist movement.
In 1965, he joined the Indian National Congress, and two years later, he was elected general secretary of the Congress Parliamentary Party. As a member of Parliament, he became a focal point of dissent within the Congress Party, always championing the underprivileged and opposing vested interests. In 1969, Shekhar founded Young Indian, a radical weekly publication that was frequently quoted. In 1975, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency, Shekhar was arrested and imprisoned. He served as a member of Parliament from 1962 to 1984. He was elected to Parliament again in 1989 and served until his death on July 8, 2007.
