Morarji Desai (29 February 1896 – 10 April 1995) was an Indian freedom fighter and politician who served as the fourth Prime Minister of India from 1977 to 1979. He led the Janata Party government that came to power after the Emergency, the first not formed by the Congress. Sworn in at 81, he remains the oldest person to become Prime Minister. A strict Gandhian, he is the only Indian to have received both the Bharat Ratna and Pakistan’s highest civilian award, the Nishan-e-Pakistan.
Quick Facts
| Full name | Morarji Ranchhodji Desai |
| Born | 29 February 1896, Bhadeli, Bulsar district, Bombay Presidency (now Gujarat), India |
| Died | 10 April 1995, Bombay (aged 99) |
| Office | 4th Prime Minister of India (24 March 1977 – 28 July 1979) |
| Party | Indian National Congress; Congress (O); Janata Party |
| Earlier offices | Chief Minister of Bombay State (1952–1956); Finance Minister; Deputy Prime Minister (1967–1969) |
| Education | Wilson College, Bombay |
| Spouse | Gujraben |
| Honours | Nishan-e-Pakistan (1990), Bharat Ratna (1991) |
Early Life
Desai was the eldest of eight children of a schoolteacher, who died when he was fifteen. After graduating from Wilson College he joined the provincial civil service in 1918 and served as a deputy collector. He resigned in 1930 to join Mahatma Gandhi‘s civil disobedience movement and was jailed several times.
Political Career
He was a minister in Bombay from 1937 and Chief Minister of Bombay State from 1952 to 1956. Jawaharlal Nehru brought him to Delhi, where as Finance Minister he presented ten Union Budgets, still a record. He was passed over for Prime Minister in 1964 and again in 1966, when Indira Gandhi was chosen. He became her Deputy Prime Minister in 1967 but resigned in 1969 when she took away the finance portfolio and nationalised the banks. In the Congress split that followed he led the Congress (O).
He was arrested on the night the Emergency was declared in June 1975 and held in solitary confinement for nineteen months. In the 1977 election the opposition parties, united as the Janata Party, defeated Indira Gandhi, and Desai became Prime Minister. His government undid the Emergency’s restrictions through the 44th Amendment, improved relations with Pakistan and China and withdrew high-value banknotes in 1978. Quarrels among its leaders, especially with Charan Singh, brought it down in July 1979.
Personal Life
Desai married Gujraben in 1911. He was a teetotaller and vegetarian who enforced prohibition and was known for his rigid principles and his practice of urine therapy. He retired to Mumbai and died there in 1995, a few months before his hundredth birthday.
Legacy
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where was Morarji Desai born?
Morarji Desai was born on 29 February 1896 in Bhadeli, Bulsar district, Bombay Presidency (now Gujarat), India.
When did Morarji Desai die?
Died: 10 April 1995, Bombay (aged 99).
What honours has Morarji Desai received?
Nishan-e-Pakistan (1990), Bharat Ratna (1991).
Featured image: Morarji Desai, leader of the Janata Party, speaks to the press during the general election, March 1977. Photo by Anefo, Dutch National Archives, licensed under CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
