Question

The split in the Congress in 1969 was projected by Indira Gandhi as-

• A. The failure of the Whip to enforce the candidature of Sanjeeva Reddy
• B. As a tactical strategy for General elections held in 1967.
• C. Ensuring that the smaller factions within the Congress do away with the differences.
• D. An ideological divide between socialists and conservatives.

Hint:

Indira Gandhi described the 1969 split as a fight of ideas: socialists versus conservatives.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
In 1969 the Congress party broke into two groups. One group followed Indira Gandhi and the other was led by the senior leaders known as the Syndicate. The question asks how Indira Gandhi explained this split to the public.

Step 2: Key Fact:
Indira Gandhi presented the fight as a clash of ideas. She said she stood for socialism, bank nationalisation and the removal of privileges of the princes. She described her opponents as conservatives who opposed these changes.

Step 3: Check option (1).
The Whip failure over Sanjeeva Reddy is a real event of the 1969 presidential election. Reddy was the official Congress candidate and he lost to V. V. Giri. But this was the trigger of the split, not the way Indira Gandhi projected it. So option (1) is not correct.

Step 4: Check option (2).
The General elections of 1967 were already over by 1969. The split was not planned as a strategy for them. So option (2) is wrong.

Step 5: Check option (3).
The split did the opposite of ending differences. It divided the party into Congress (O) and Congress (R). So option (3) is wrong.

Step 6: Check option (4).
This matches the way she presented the split. She called it a struggle between socialists and conservatives. So option (4) is TRUE.

Final Answer:
Indira Gandhi projected the 1969 split as an ideological divide between socialists and conservatives. This is option (4). \[ \boxed{\text{Option 4}} \]