The JD(S) traces its roots back to the Janata Party organized by Jayprakash Narayan that united all anti-Indira Gandhi parties under one banner for the 1977 national elections.

The Janata Dal was formed in Bangalore with the merger of the Janata Party with smaller opposition parties in 1988. In 1996, the party reached its pinnacle when Shri H.D. Deve Gowda became Prime Minister of India, heading the United Front (UF) coalition government.

In 1999, when some senior leaders of the party decided to join hands with the BJP led NDA, the party split vertically with the committed socialist secular leaders including Late Prof Madhu Dandwate joining forces with Shri Deve Gowda.

The 2004 elections in Karnataka witnessed the revival of the party’s fortunes with Janata Dal (Secular) becoming part of the ruling coalition in the state. Subsequently, party leader Shri H D Kumaraswamy headed a popular coalition government in the state for 20 months.