Which statement is not true about the changes in political power during the period around 1967?

In 7 states defection prevented Congress from forming government.

The correct answer is Option 2 - In 7 states defection prevented Congress from forming government.

Option 1- The Congress Party lost power in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa, Madras, and Kerala.
Option 2- In 7 states defection prevented Congress from forming government.
Option 3- Coalition governments were formed in eight states consisting of different non-Congress parties.
Option 4- The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) secured a majority of its own in Madras State.

CORRECTION in Option 2- In TWO other States defections prevented it from forming a government.

The 1967 election results jolted the Congress at both the national and state levels. Many contemporary political observers described the election results as a ‘political earthquake’.The Congress did manage to get a majority in the Lok Sabha, but with its lowest tally of seats and share of votes since 1952. Half the ministers in Indira Gandhi’s cabinet were defeated. The political stalwarts who lost in their constituencies included Kamaraj in Tamil Nadu, S.K. Patil in Maharashtra, Atulya Ghosh in West Bengal and K. B. Sahay in Bihar.

The dramatic nature of the political change would be more apparent at the State level. The Congress lost majority in as many as seven States. In two other States defections prevented it from forming a government. These nine States where the Congress lost power were spread acrosss the country - Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa, Madras and Kerala. In Madras State (now called Tamil Nadu), a regional party — the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) - came to power by securing a clear majority. The DMK won power after having led a massive anti-Hindi agitation by students against the centre on the issue of imposition of Hindi as the official language. This was the first time any non-Congress party had secured a majority of its own in any State. In the other eight States, coalition governments consisting of different non-Congress parties were formed. A popular saying was that one could take a train from Delhi to Howrah and not pass through a single Congress ruled State. It was a strange feeling for those who were used to seeing the Congress in power.