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TIME: Almanac 1990
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1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
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091189
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09118900.030
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1990-09-17
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WORLD, Page 51World NotesINDIAPulling the Plug On Gandhi
Civil servants were cowed by government edict into turning up
for work, but most of India's labor force stayed away, as
opposition parties held a daylong general strike last week to
demand the resignation of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Almost all
factories and shops were closed, and travel was brought to a near
halt across the country. The arrests of tens of thousands limited
violence, but twelve people died as rival political groups clashed
with one another and the police. The strike was intended to show
just how disenchanted Indians are with a leader once dubbed "Mr.
Clean." Gloated V.P. Singh, Gandhi's main challenger: "We have come
out winners."
The Bharat Bandh (Close India) strike was the opposition's
second major action this summer against the Prime Minister. In July
104 members of Parliament resigned to protest an a-lleged $50
million government kickback scheme in a $1.3 billion purchase of
Swedish arms for the Indian army. Gandhi is not likely to step down
before the general elections expected in December. But most
observers see the mudslinging as the start of a dirty and bitter
campaign.