In March 1974, the students in Bihar organized some agitations. They were voicing their protest against increase in the prices of essential commodities, unemployment, and corruption. They invited Jay Prakash Narayan to lead the struggle. He accepted the invitation insisting that the protests must be nonviolent and they should not be limited to Bihar alone. Thus the protests acquired a political nature. People joined the agitation. JP Narayan asked the Centre to dismiss the Bihar government. He envisaged a total revolution at the social, economic and political levels. Bihar government refused to resign.

This Movement got wide publicity at national level. JP Narayan wanted this Movement to spread across India. When the Railway workers struck work, there was the possibility of the entire country coming to a standstill. In 1975, JPN made a popular march to the Parliament. It was the biggest march Delhi had ever seen. The Opposition looked at JP Narayan as an alternative to Mrs. Gandhi.

By June 1975, the enmity between the ruling party’ and the opposition became very strong. JPN demanded the resignation of Mrs. Gandhi. On 25 June 1975 there was a big protest on the Ramlila Ground in Delhi. There also he demanded Mrs Gandhi’s’ resignation. He declared he would start a satyagraha. He asked the police and government employees not to obey any rule that was not normal. Government felt it could not continue working. Many people were against Congress.

As a reaction to all this, on 25 June 1975, Indira Gandhi declared an Emergency saying that there was threat to the internal security of the country. In the 1977 election, after the Emergency, the entire Opposition fought against the Congress under Janata Party led by JP Narayan. For the first time Congress lost its majority in the Lok Sabha. Thus JP Narayan became the hero who fought for the restoration of democracy.