When Sharad Pawar took over the party presidency in October 1981, the name of the party was changed to Indian Congress (Socialist).[1]
He became the youngest chief minister of Maharashtra by toppling the Vasantdada Patil-led Congress government in 1978. He led a group of 40 MLAs to split from the parent party and formed the government with Janata Party's support.
In 1980, after Indira Gandhi swept the Lok Sabha polls, Pawar's state government was dismissed. In the Maharashtra elections in 1980, his party lost.
Again in 1985, Pawar's party the Indian National Congress (Socialist) won only 54 seats and he became the Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra. With the split and the decline of the Janata Party nationally, Pawar soon realised that he can't get back to power in Maharashtra on his own. Pawar merged his party back into the Congress in 1986.[2]
^Andersen, Walter K.. India in 1981: Stronger Political Authority and Social Tension, published in Asian Survey, Vol. 22, No. 2, A Survey of Asia in 1981: Part II (February, 1982), pp. 119-135