Tamil Nadu Timeline

Indira Gandhi

14 events, 1964 to 1980; 4 marked as turning points.

  1. 1964

    1. 1964New DelhiPolitics

      Kamaraj becomes Congress president and 'kingmaker'

      As president of the Indian National Congress, K. Kamaraj guided the selection of two Prime Ministers.

  2. 1968

    1. 8 Jan 1968New DelhiLanguage

      Official Languages (Amendment) Act guarantees bilingualism

      Amid fresh protests in Madras State, Parliament amended the 1963 Act to ensure English would continue in use alongside Hindi.

  3. 1971

    1. Mar 1971ChennaiPolitics

      DMK wins 184 seats in the 1971 election

      The DMK, allied with Indira Gandhi's Congress, won a landslide in the first Assembly election held under the name Tamil Nadu.

  4. 1974

    1. 1974New DelhiDiplomacy

      Sirima-Gandhi Pact on stateless persons of Indian origin

      India and Sri Lanka agreed on the future of the 150,000 persons of Indian origin whose status had been left open by the 1964 Sirima-Shastri Pact.

    2. 16 Apr 1974Fort St. George, IndiaPolitics

      Assembly adopts state autonomy resolution

      Chief Minister Karunanidhi moved a resolution in the Assembly demanding state autonomy, based on the Rajamannar Committee's recommendations.

    3. Jun 1974KatchatheevuDiplomacy

      India recognises Sri Lankan sovereignty over Katchatheevu

      Under the Indo-Sri Lankan Maritime Agreement, India accepted Katchatheevu island in the Palk Strait as Sri Lankan territory.

    4. 15 Aug 1974Fort St. GeorgeGovernance

      Chief Ministers win right to hoist flag on Independence Day

      Following Karunanidhi's demand, Chief Ministers won the right to hoist the national flag on Independence Day, and he did so at Fort St. George.

  5. 1975

    1. 25 Jun 1975 to 21 Mar 1977New DelhiPolitics

      National Emergency declared

      Indira Gandhi's government declared a national Emergency; the DMK government in Tamil Nadu opposed it.

  6. 1976

    1. 1976ChennaiPolitics

      Kamaraj awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously

      Former Chief Minister K. Kamaraj, who died in October 1975, was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna.

    2. 1976KatchatheevuDiplomacy

      India and Sri Lanka sign the 1976 maritime agreement

      A further agreement on the maritime boundary restricted fishermen of each country from fishing in the other's exclusive economic zone.

    3. 31 Jan 1976 to 30 Jun 1977ChennaiPolitics

      Karunanidhi government dismissed; President's rule imposed

      During the Emergency the Union government dismissed the DMK ministry and imposed President's rule in Tamil Nadu.

  7. 1977

    1. Mar 1977ChennaiPolitics

      Congress-AIADMK alliance wins 34 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu

      In the post-Emergency Lok Sabha election, the Congress-AIADMK-CPI alliance won 34 of Tamil Nadu's 39 seats even as the Janata Party took power nationally.

  8. 1980

    1. Jan 1980ChennaiPolitics

      DMK-Congress alliance wins 37 of 39 Lok Sabha seats

      The Congress (Indira) and DMK alliance won 37 of Tamil Nadu's 39 Lok Sabha seats, a setback for M. G. Ramachandran's ruling AIADMK.

    2. Feb 1980 to 9 Jun 1980ChennaiPolitics

      MGR government dismissed, President's rule imposed

      The Union government dismissed the AIADMK ministry and dissolved the Tamil Nadu assembly, imposing President's rule.