Prime Ministers of India – Indira Gandhi

Posted by on Feb 10, 2009 in Indian Politicians

Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (in short Indira Gandhi) is the most controversial Prime Minister in Indian history. Over the years, the Late Indira has continue to be unpopular for her blunders of enforcing the infamous Emergency between 1975 and 1977, corruption charges on her and in the 80s for ordering the Operation Blue Star in which the Indian army had to sanitise the Golden Temple in Amritsar from Sikh extremists.  This military operation had caused the deaths of innocent pilgrims trapped inside the Temple and also the soldiers. Indira Gandhi had to pay for her decision of ordering the Operation Blue star when two of her own bodyguards of the Sikh community had assassinated her in 1984.

However, Indira Gandhi is given the credit for being an extremely brave leader for her aggressive leadership in 1971 which liberated Bangladesh from Pakistan, a massive blow that Pakistan has not been yet to digest. She continues to have a massive following among the masses of India. A lot of educated people do not have a good impression about her because of the fact that she ruled the country like a Dictator and for allowing nepotism. Indira also had strained relations with the then US President Richard Nixon. The bottom line about Indira Gandhi is that she was the most happening Prime Minister of India.

Daughter of the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira had become India’s first and also the only woman Prime Minister till date. She was overall the 5th and the 8th P.M of the country ruling for a total of almost 15 years in four terms altogether. Indira Gandhi’s son Rajiv Gandhi had also gone onto become the Prime Minister but was unfortunately assassinated as well like his mother.

Below are some basic details about Indira Gandhi:

Place and Date of Birth: 19 November 1917, Allahabad, United Provinces, British India

Died On: 31 October 1984, New Delhi, India

Religion: Hinduism

Political Party: Indian National Congress

Tenure of Prime Ministership: 26 June 1970 – 29 April 1971 and 15 January 1980 – 31 October 1984

Parents’ Name: Jawaharlal Nehru (Father) and Kamala Nehru (Mother)

Husband’s Name: Feroze Gandhi (a Member of Parliament belonging to the Indian National Congress)

Children’s Names: Has two sons Rahul Gandhi (assasinated in 1991) and Sanjay Gandhi (a MP belonging to her party, died of a plane crash in 1980)

Video of Indira Gandhi giving an interview to BBC:

Indira Gandhi in Photos:

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