From LS polls surprise to NEET protest: Key political events in 2024

From political continuity - and shifts - to landmark ceremonies, 2024 saw power struggles, protests, and symbolic moments

        Hat-trick with a coalition rider: After a hotly contested election centred on jobs and reservations, Narendra Modi returned as Prime Minister for a third term. So did coalition politics. The BJP fell short of a majority, and turned to allies like 

N Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP and Nitish Kumar’s JD(U). The Opposition INDIA, particularly the Congress, showed promise, but suffered setbacks in key states. As the year drew to a close, the Opposition intensified its attacks on the government over US bribery charges against industrialist Gautam Adani and the unrest in Manipur and Sambhal (Uttar Pradesh). The Prime Minister, meanwhile, pushed ahead with the ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bill and 11 resolutions for a “Viksit Bharat”. 

 

 

                                  In the name of Ram: In a high-profile ceremony, with India’s who’s who in attendance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi consecrated the Ram Lalla idol at Ayodhya’s newly built temple on January 22. The temple was built at an estimated cost of Rs 1,800 crore. “Lord Ram has arrived (home) after 500 years of struggle,” Modi said, urging Indians to build a nation for the next 1,000 years. Opposition leaders boycotted the ceremony, alleging it had been politicised as a BJP-RSS event ahead of the general elections. 

 

                                    On the streets, at home & abroad:

(1) June marked the beginning of unrest as NEET-UG aspirants took to the streets against alleged paper leaks and corruption in the examination process. These protests led to arrests and delays in other such exams, though the Supreme Court ruled out a retest.   (2) By August, the brutal rape and murder of a junior doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College triggered nationwide demonstrations, with the Opposition targeting West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the deteriorating state of women’s safety. 

(3) In Manipur, ethnic violence flared once again, with militants killing six people, which led to protesters torching a BJP legislator’s house. 

(4) Meanwhile, international tensions escalated when pro-Khalistani demonstrators clashed with Hindu devotees outside a Brampton temple in Canada on November 3, further straining India-Canada relations. As the year progressed, farmers at Haryana’s Shambhu border faced police resistance with tear gas and water cannons as they marched towards Delhi to press for their demands. 

 

                                                                    VOCAL FOR LOCAL:  On January 3, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s snorkelling adventure in Lakshadweep grabbed national attention, as he urged Indians to add the island destination to their travel plans. The visit was widely seen as a counterweight to the Maldives, whose ties with China and alleged ‘anti-Indian’ stance had raised eyebrows. Modi’s call to promote Indian destinations resonated, fitting within his broader ‘Vocal for Local’ campaign. His efforts paid dividends: Tourist footfall to Lakshadweep more than doubled between April and June, and flight services to the islands surged by 88%. In contrast, government data indicated that Indian tourism to the Maldives almost halved during the same period. 

   

                                 

GAINING GROUND, REGAINING STRENGTH: The first Assembly elections in Jammu & Kashmir after the revocation of Article 370 saw a record voter turnout of 63%, with Omar Abdullah (1) of the National Conference taking the helm as the first chief minister of now Union Territory. The BJP, which had performed below expectations in the general election, rebounded in several state polls, securing a victory in Maharashtra’s Assembly elections. Devendra Fadnavis (2) took oath as chief minister for the third time, while the party also triumphed in Haryana under Nayab Singh Saini (3), and unseated the long-standing Naveen Patnaik government in Odisha, where BJP’s Mohan Charan Majhi (4) assumed leadership. Andhra Pradesh saw a political veteran return, with TDP’s N Chandrababu Naidu (5) becoming chief minister for the fourth time. However, in Jharkhand, the JMM-led INDIA bloc made a strong comeback, with Hemant Soren (6) regaining power despite his prior imprisonment in a money laundering case.

 

 

                              CAPITAL CARETAKER:  Delhi, which votes early next year, saw a change of the guard with AAP leader Atishi taking charge as interim chief minister, symbolically placing an empty chair beside her for Arvind Kejriwal, who had stepped down after securing bail in the excise policy case. 

 

                                              TWEAKS IN THE LEGAL LANDSCAPE: October witnessed the unveiling of a new ‘Lady Justice’ statue outside the Supreme Court, replacing the blindfold — symbolic of impartiality — with open eyes. "The law is not blind; it sees all equally," remarked then Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, who was succeeded in November by Justice Sanjiv Khanna. In a bid to modernise its legal framework, India enacted three new criminal laws. The colonial-era Indian Penal Code was replaced with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita on July 1 amid concerns from legal experts about the lack of transparency in the 

drafting process.