The 1998 General Elections for the 12th Lok Sabha was held on 16, 22 and 28 February 1998, 3 years ahead of its schedule.
The Lok Sabha elections of 1998 was conducted when the Inder Kumar Gujral-led United Front lost its majority after Indian National Congress withdrew its support from the government.
As a result of the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP-led NDA government came into power with the support of the Telugu Desam Party.
Table of Contents
Results
Summary:
- NDA won 269 seats with external support of 29 seats from the Telugu Desam Party.
- Indian National Congress won 114 seats in 1998 vs 141 seats in 1996.
- The AIADMK won 10 seats.
- The CPIM won 32 seats.
- Total registered voters were 60
Partywise Results as Declared on 2-3 March 1998
Also Read: Current UT Lok Sabha Seats
Also Read: Current Statewise Lok Sabha Seats
Also Read: 2019 General Elections for 17th Lok Sabha Partywise Seats
1. National Parties
- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
- Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)
- Communist Party of India (CPI)
- Communist Party of India – Marxist (CPIM)
- Indian National Congress (INC)
- Janata Dal
- Samata Party
2. State Parties
A total of 178 state parties took part in the elections.
Partywise Results
| SN | Party | Seats | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) | 182 | |
| 2 | Indian National Congress (INC) | 141 | |
| 3 | Communist Party of India (Marxist) | 32 | |
| 4 | Samajwadi Party | 20 | |
| 5 | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) | 18 | |
| 6 | Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) | 17 | |
| 7 | Telugu Desam Party (TDP) | 12 | |
| 8 | Samata Party | 12 | |
| 9 | Communist Party of India (CPI) | 9 | |
| 10 | Biju Janata Dal (BJD) | 9 | |
| 11 | Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) | 8 | |
| 12 | West Bengal Trinamool Congress (Currently AITC) | 7 | |
| 13 | Janata Dal | 6 | |
| 14 | Shiv Sena | 6 | |
| 15 | Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) | 6 | |
| 16 | Independents | 6 | |
| 17 | Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) | 5 | |
| 18 | Revolutionary Socialist Party | 5 | |
| 19 | Haryana Lok Dal – Rashtriya | 4 | |
| 20 | Pattali Makkal Katchi | 4 | |
| 21 | Republican Party of India | 4 | |
| 22 | Tamil Maanila Congress | 3 | |
| 23 | Lok Shakti | 3 | |
| 24 | Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) | 3 | |
| 25 | Jammu Kashmir National Conference | 3 | |
| 26 | All India Forward Bloc | 2 | |
| 27 | Muslim League Kerala State Committee | 2 | |
| 28 | Arunachal Congress | 2 | |
| 29 | All India Rashtriya Janata Party | 1 | |
| 30 | Samajwadi Janata Party – Rashtriya | 1 | |
| 31 | Haryana Vikas Party | 1 | |
| 32 | All India Majlis-e-Ittehad Muslimeen | 1 | |
| 33 | All India Indira Congress – Secular | 1 | |
| 34 | Janata Party | 1 | |
| 35 | United Minorities Front – Assam | 1 | |
| 36 | Kerala Congress-M | 1 | |
| 37 | Peasants and Workers Party of India | 1 | |
| 38 | Manipur State Congress Party | 1 | |
| 39 | Autonomous State Demand Committee | 1 | |
| 40 | Sikkim Democratic Front | 1 | |
| * | Nominated Anglo Indians | 2 | Scrapped in 2020 |
| TOTAL | 545 |
Reason for Premature Elections in 1999
After merely 13 months into power, the government again collapsed because of shortage of just 1 member (to cross majority mark) when AIADMK led by Jayaram Jayalalitha withdrew from the alliance. AIADMK secretary withdrew the support because the BJP led government did not sack the M. Karunanidhi led Tamil Nadu state government. AIADMK lost the 1996 Tamil Nadu state elections with just 4/234 seats.
