You know that elections are around the corner when all you see on the roads, hear on the radio, see on the news are political campaigns, rallies, political slogans by different parties rising on hoardings and advertisements. Every party that decides to stand makes promises to the common men stating they will do this; they will do that, they will introduce this, they will eradicate that, and so on. Not until the party gets elected we see how far they have managed to keep the promises and how many words of theirs come true and how many do not. Politics in India have started right after our country go independence and till date are deciding the fate of the future and having a hand in shaping our country.
What attracts the norm most is the political or campaign slogans that the parties come up with. There are instances when these election slogans had the power for the winning of a particular party. Today, a lot of capital is spent on coming up with attractive slogans and a significant amount of time is invested for the same.
One of the most recent slogans that managed to get to almost all of us is “Abki Baar, Modi Sarkar” for the 2014 elections. Another famous slogan that Congress used was “Garibi Hatao” which created a shift and got the most attention amongst all other slogans by Congress. From the time elections started in the country, to date, there are some slogans that have changed the whole political game and below is the compilation of the same.
#1 Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan
Meaning: “Hail the Soldier, Hail the Farmer.”
This was a slogan that was coined by the second Prime Minister (PM) of India, Lal Bahadur Shastri in the year 1965. This was right after the food crisis and a war with Pakistan. This is one of the most influential election slogans that got the entire nation to rally behind the standing party, Congress. And, undoubtedly, Congress party came in power after the results of the 1967 polls.
#2 Indira Hatao, Desh Bachao
Meaning: “Remove Indira, Save the Country”
This famous political slogan was Jayaprakash Narayan’s famous rallying cry for the opposition parties post-Emergency. Major opposition parties came under the umbrella Janata Party to trounce the Congress in the 1977 parliamentary polls. The Congress party won the general elections in 1971 on the back of Indira Gandhi’s slogan. Due to the slogan’s significant impact, it was used every now and then during campaigns prior elections. Some of the famous political personalities such as Sitaram Kesri, Rajiv Gandhi and his son Rahul have used the slogan in their speeches and campaigns.
#3 Bari Bari Atal Bari
Meaning: “Again and Again Bihari”
Bari Bari Atal Bari was coined in the year 1996 at a political rally held in Lucknow. Though for a short period, the slogan worked in the favor and the party succeeded in the elections. However, Atal Bihari Vajpayee remained in the position of the PM for 13 days in the very same year.
#4 Congress Ka Haath, Aam Aadmi ke Saath
Meaning: “Congress’s Hand (support), with the Common Man”
This slogan was used during the rallies for the elections of 2014 and Congress, once again, came into power. The slogan was an addition to the previously used “Garib Ke Saath”. The “Aam Aadmi” was to show the party’s support to the country’s growing scale of the middle class.
#5 Maa, Mati, Manush
Meaning: “Mother. Motherland, People”
This particular political party slogan was one of the ten most popular political party slogans at that time. It is a famous Bengali slogan that was coined by All India Trinamool Congress chief and the current chief minister of West Bengal state, Mamata Banerjee. The slogan gained high popularity during the 2009 elections and 2011 state assembly elections in West Bengal. It was also used in most of their election and political campaigns. Later, the chief minister Mamata Banerjee wrote a book with the same title Ma, Mati, Manush.
#6 Garibi Hatao, Indira Lao, Desh Bachao
Meaning: “Abolish Poverty, Bring in Indira, Rescue the Nation”
This was the slogan for Indira Gandhi during her run for the 1971 elections. Using this slogan gave a fair chance to Congress to change their image from that of a landowner’s to a poor man’s party. Garbi Hatao (Eradicate Poverty) was a bold move made by the Congress party that was never done before, and it gave the poor hope. However, seven years down the line, the slogan was mocked for its ineffectiveness as bureaucratic mismanagement and hurdles hindered Indira’s anti-poverty measures. This led to another famous slogan “Indira Hatao, Desh Bachao” that was coined by J.P. Narayan who led the campaign ‘Total Revolution’ against Indira Gandhi.
#7 India Shining
This was the slogan for the 2004’s elections during Vajpayee’s campaign. The idea behind this slogan was to sell to the nation the image of the new and emerging economy of its country. With the picture of shining cities during the night, highways, and several other images of urban development, it seemed as though India emerged as a developed superpower. However blitzy the image was, BJP lost in the 2004 elections against the Congress’s campaign for standing with the poor.
#8 Achhe Din Aane Waale Hain
Meaning: “Good Days are Going to Come”
This is one of the recent political slogans that are very popular to date. It was the present Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s claim for the 2014 elections for the post of Prime Minister and the rest need to be stated. Although Modi won the elections and gained a majority of seats in the house with the help of this slogan, it was then PM Manmohan Singh who coined the term “Achhe Din,” and the latter part was added by Modi in his next speech.
The slogan for this campaign is “Main Bhi Chowkidar” that roughly translates to “I also am a watch-person,” and the coming elections will tell us how this works for the BJP.
#9 Jab Tak Sooraj Chand Rahega, Indira Tera Naam Rahega
Meaning: “Until There Is The Sun and The Moon, Indira, Your Name Will Shine”
Congress coined this slogan for their elections campaign after Indira Gandhi was assassinated in the year 1984. The party won the elections as sympathy for her demise worked in their favor.
#10 Vote For Cow, Forget All Others Now
The original symbol of the Congress party was the yoked oxen. But when Indira Gandhi and the party split, she created her symbol during the 1960s as an offshoot of the original. However, when people started teasing by comparing the cow and calf to Indira and Sanjay Gandhi, the symbol was changed.
With every election, there is a new slogan that each party comes up with in hopes of winning the election. Indian election results are always awaited news for all of us and we are ruled by the party that we vote for. Every vote makes a difference, hence, vote wisely.
