Janata

After Gandhi's shock defeat in 1977, the short-lived Janata Party - a patchwork of anti-Gandhi forces - moved quickly to undo the damage.

Gandhi was swept back to power in January 1980, after the Janata Party government collapsed due to internal divisions and leadership struggles.

Sukanta Majumdar, a junior federal minister and chief of West Bengal's opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, has criticised the state government and called for "stricter monitoring" of fire safety measures to prevent such tragedies in future.

These sentiments have deepened since 2019 when the federal government, led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, stripped the region of its autonomy.

“The company will defend itself, and the law will take its course,” said Sambit Patra, a spokesman for Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, or B.J.P.