Vishwanath Pratap Singh emerged as the leader of the coalition,
Janata Dal, that defeated the Congress in the general elections. The
party was made mainly of disaffected leaders who had quit the
Congress at various points. The government was supported by the
two groups from opposing ends of the political spectrum: the BJP
and the Left Front. V P Singh's main contribution as PM was the
decision to provide reservations for the backward classes in
government services and educational institutions. This set off protest
across the nation and sparked off immolations by several
students-and also set a new political agenda for the country. As a
reaction to the call for "Mandalisation" of the country, the BJP
undertook a "Rath Yatra" to evoke a pan-Hindu identity, which
resulted in the worsening of the communal situation. Ultimately, the
BJP withdrew its support to the Janata Dal government, leading to
the fall of V P Singh from the PM's chair.