The PPP, a Marxist–Leninist party, opposed British colonial rule of Guyana. After its electoral victory in April 1953, the PPP briefly formed the government, but the British government had the PPP government removed later in the year due to concerns about the Jagans' alleged Communist sympathies. Leading the country for only 133 days in 1953 following the free and universal election, she and Cheddi were first deposed and then jailed in 1955 on orders of Winston Churchill who feared the existence of a Communist country in the Western hemisphere. Churchill wished to prevent the potential for Russia to form ties with the new government, though this never occurred. Cheddi and Janet remained in jail for five months; they were subsequently kept under house arrest for two years. Winston Churchill had modified the Guyanese constitution to prevent her and Cheddi from holding the office of President or Prime Minister. In 1957, she was re-elected to the House of Assembly from Essequibo constituency and became Minister of Labour, Health and Housing. Retaining his popularity, in 1961, Cheddi was re-elected Prime Minister. Janet later succeeded Claude Christian as Minister of Home Affairs upon Christian's death in 1963, but resigned from the Cabinet in 1964. As a member of the Elections Commission for the opposition in 1967, she expressed concern about the possibility of vote rigging. She was also the editor of the PPP newspaper "Mirror" from 1973 to 1997.