Et Tu, Brute? India’s Most Dramatic Political Ruptures

Anyone who has read Shakespeare’s famous play Julius Caesar knows and remembers the line “Et tu, Brute?” (You too, Brutus), delivered after Caesar’s trusted aide Brutus and others stab him to death. This one line is now colloquially used as a dramatic or comical shock to a situation involving betrayal. Little did Shakespeare know that this Latin phrase would continue its way to modern dialogue, and to his readers, famously remembering the Ides of March.

Of course, drawing parallels between literature and real-world politics is only metaphorical. Yet, while Indian politics might not have a cautionary tale to beware the Ides of March, it certainly has its fair share of Et tu, Brute? moments that echo the sentiment behind Caesar’s famous lament.

Indira Gandhi vs Syndicate 1969

One of the earliest political ruptures of Independent India involved the split of the grand old party into two factions, Congress O and Congress R. Led by K. Kamaraj, Morarji Desai, and S. Nijalingappa, the ‘old guard’ or the Syndicate posed one of the toughest challenges to her leadership within the party leadership structure and clashed over her “authoritarian style’ even though they operated within the framework of Jawaharlal Nehru's leadership, particularly in the final years of his life.

Morarji Desai & Janata Party 1979

Elections after the Emergency favoured the Janata Party, but even before the government could take birth, it was already doomed. Too many cooks spoil the dish, is an apt phrase for the Janata Party government. Internal disputes erupted, and in two years, Charan Singh withdrew from the coalition to form his own government. In Lutyens, many observed that though Morarji Desai had outwitted Charan Singh, Jagjivan Ram, and Chandra Shekhar to claim the PM’s chair, it was Charan Singh who had the last laugh, but as history would have it, Charan Singh’s government didn’t last long.

VP Singh & BJP 1990

The 90s began with the first of many coalition governments that the decade would witness. VP Singh was sworn in as PM with the ‘outside support’ of the newly formed BJP and the dominant Communist Party of India (Marxist). The coming of adversaries didn’t stand long as the BJP withdrew its support from the government when Singh ordered the arrest of LK Advani during the Ram Rath Yatra. Singh remained defiant and faced the no-confidence motion, which he lost. He questioned the BJP,  what kind of country do you want? and later demanded an apology from the BJP for their withdrawal.

Chandra Shekhar & Rajiv Gandhi 1991

Chandra Shekhar was finally sworn in as PM — the only constitutional post he ever held in his long political career. How he became the PM and sustained the government with only 56 MPs in a house that needed 272 MPs for a majority is in itself a wonder that many political pundits still talk about. With ‘outside support’ from Rajiv Gandhi, the Chandra Shekhar government was formed due to mutual respect and admiration for each other. Things turned sour when the Congress accused Chandra Shekhar’s government of spying on Gandhi and withdrew its support. He accused the Congress of betrayal, refused to be humiliated, and ended his tenure with his famous not a puppet speech.

Mamata Banerjee & Congress 1998

A rising leader in the midst of the Communist dominance in Bengal — Mamta Banerjee. Often dubbed as the “Street Fighter” of Indian politics, her disagreement with the party's high command led her to believe that her leadership growth was being hindered even when she held one of the strongest grassroots connections with the Bengali voters for the Congress, leading to her breaking away from the party and forming the TMC. Such was her exit that the Congress is still unsuccessfully trying to fill her position in Bengal.

H.D. Deve Gowda, I K Gujral & Congress 1996 - 1998

The 13-day government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee ceased to exist, and a United Front was established with H D Deve Gowda as PM with ‘outside support’ from the Congress. The Congress complained and abruptly in March 1997, Sitaram Kesri withdrew his support, only to make the Congress support another United Front under the leadership of I K Gujral, which too didn’t last long. The interim report of the Jain Commission investigating the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi pointed to certain members of the government having links with the LTTE, to which the Congress demanded resignations. Gujral refused, citing that it was an interim report, but the support was withdrawn. The Congress maintained that both Fronts were made with similar valued allies; however, both Gowda and Gujral maintained that Congress’s intent to form secular governments was politically manoeuvred.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee & AIADMK 1999

The last of the 90s coalition governments to come into existence had probably the most dramatic fall of a government. This was the fall of the Vajpayee government because of one single vote. After running the shortest-lived government for 13 days in 1996, Vajpayee again led the BJP into power, but his coalition government could only run for 13 months, for Jayalalithaa, the iron lady of Tamil Nadu, withdrew the support of AIADMK from the Vajpayee government after tensions rose between the allies to a point of no return.

Sonia Gandhi & Sharad Pawar 1999

The Congress was in shambles due to its 1998 performance under the leadership of Sitaram Kesri, resulting in the elevation of Sonia Gandhi, the widow of Rajiv Gandhi, to the Congress president. However, senior and trustworthy members of the Congress and the Gandhi family, like Sharad Pawar, P.A. Sangma and Tariq Anwar, collectively opposed the red carpet allocated to Sonia Gandhi to be party president on the pretext of her foreign origins, leading to their expulsion from the party.

Bal Thackeray & Raj Thackeray 2005 - 2006

Discontent came knocking on the door of the powerful Bal Thackeray when his own nephew, Raj Thackeray, whom many believed to be the next Shiv Sena Supremo, defected from the Shiv Sena to form MNS in 2006. The family conflict was made public with insiders citing disrespect and internal politics to upstage Raj by his own cousin and Bal Thackeray’s son, Uddhav Thackeray.

H. D. Kumaraswamy & Siddaramaiah 2019

2018 produced a hung verdict for the Karnataka state assembly. Siddaramaiah, an ex-member of the JD(S) who was expelled in 2005 citing differences with H D Deve Gowda, found himself representing the Congress and partnering with Gowda’s son Kumaraswamy to make the latter the CM. Dissatisfaction amongst leaders over ministry allocation and internal disagreements led to 17 MLAs' resignation from both JD(S) and the Congress, reducing the government’s majority and leading to its fall.

Jyotiraditya Scindia & Congress 2020

Congress’s return to power in Madhya Pradesh was short-lived when Jyotiraditya Scindia, a prominent Congress leader and part of the Congress’s younger leadership, defected from the party with 22 MLAs, citing disrespect, lack of responsibility, and tensions with CM Kamal Nath. Scindia’s exit was personal to the Congress, given his loyalty to the party and especially to the Gandhi family, which was nurtured from the days of his father, Madhavrao Scindia.

Nitish Kumar 2013, 2015, 2017, 2022, 2024

From NDA to Mahagathbandhan to NDA to Mahagathbandhan and finally to NDA. This has been the journey of Nitish Kumar in a single decade, earning him the nickname ‘Paltu Ram’ from his rivals. Few politicians embody the fluidity of coalition politics like Nitish Kumar, whose journey reads almost like a political echo of Caesar’s lament — alliances, like loyalties, are rarely permanent, but he swears by staying with the NDA.

Uddhav Thackeray, BJP & Eknath Shinde 2019 - 2022

25 years of alliance was broken by Uddhav Thackeray to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) with Sharad Pawar and the Congress, Shiv Sena’s arch rivals, to raise Uddhav as the new CM of Maharashtra and the only Thackeray to hold a constitutional position. Uddhav’s rise didn’t last for long, as his father’s confidant Eknath Shinde revolted against him with 40 MLAs supporting Shinde, paving the way for him to become the CM of Maharashtra, returning the Shiv Sena to the NDA alliance and snatching the reins of Shiv Sena from Uddhav Thackeray. For Shinde, Uddhav violated Bal Thackeray’s Hindu ideology, and for Uddhav, Shinde’s move was ‘murder of democracy’.

Sharad Pawar & Ajit Pawar 2019, 2023

Another uncle-nephew showdown occurred twice in Maharashtra when Ajit Pawar, the nephew of Sharad Pawar, supported the BJP for a mere 80 hours, only to return to his uncle again. The cracks in the NCP started, and in 2023, Ajit Pawar led a 40-MLA revolt against his uncle to join the NDA alliance and later be sworn in as Deputy CM. This was a personal and political setback for Sharad Pawar, the Chanakya of Maharashtra politics.

The irony between the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44BC and today’s politics is that, much to the disbelief of Caesar, in decades of Indian politics too, political reversals and unexpected shifts often come from within or an ally rather than the opposition, echoing Caesar’s final cry, “Et tu, Brute?”

Author: Amol Sharma
Designation: Political Advisor & Analyst

 

Disclaimer: The parallels drawn in this article with Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar are purely metaphorical and intended to illustrate moments of political realignment or rupture in Indian politics. They do not imply moral judgment or personal accusation against any individual or party.