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| 1986 |
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| “Honeymoon” ended for Rajiv Gandhi; early 1986 was marked by increased Sikh extremism, including the temporary recapture of the Golden Temple; by mid-1986, militant Sikh factions had broken away from the ruling Akali Dal Party. A Hindu backlash emerged because many saw Rajiv's policies toward Sikhs as too conciliatory. | 1 |
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| Feb |
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| The Hindu backlash was strengthened when a judge ruled that the Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya (see 1984) should be opened to the public. The lock on a gate erected 50 years earlier was removed. Agitations by politicized Hindu groups (especially the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the political party supported by other militant Hindu groups) escalated, using Ayodhya as the focal point. | 2 |
| In Haryana, the second state carved out of the territory that had originally formed the Punjab, the chief minister resigned and was replaced according to timing that jeopardized the Haryana elections. In an attempt to save the elections, Rajiv suspended the government, thus shutting out future cooperation by moderate Sikhs. In the June elections, Congress (I) was defeated by the Lok Dal (B). | 3 |
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