Indira Gandhi
India's first and only female prime minister
She was known for centralising power and for her uncompromising political stances.[1] Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi served as India's Prime Minister from 1966 until 1977, and then again from 1980 until she was assassinated on 31 October 1984.[2] Between 1975 and 1977, Gandhi imposed a state of emergency that led to the suspension of basic civil liberties and rule by decree.[3]
Quick Facts
- Office
- Prime Minister of India
- Took office
- 14 January 1980
- Left office
- 31 October 1984
- President
- Neelam Sanjiva Reddy; Zail Singh
- Vice president
- Mohammad Hidayatullah; Ramaswamy Venkataraman
- Predecessor
- Charan Singh
- Successor
- Rajiv Gandhi
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
Indira Nehru was born on 19 November 1917 in Allahabad, the only surviving child of Jawaharlal Nehru and Kamala Nehru.[4] She was taught mostly at home by tutors and attended school intermittently until matriculation in 1934.[5] She married Feroze Gandhi in March 1942 in Allahabad according to Adi Dharm rituals.[6] In 1971 she went to war with Pakistan in support of the independence movement in East Pakistan, resulting in an Indian victory and the independence of Bangladesh.[1]
Her schooling included attendance at the International School of Geneva and the Ecole Nouvelle in Bex, Switzerland.[5] While in Europe, Indira Nehru experienced persistent health problems and required frequent journeys to Switzerland for recuperation.[7] Authorities arrested Indira Gandhi in September 1942 for participating in the Quit India Movement, and she was freed from jail in April 1943.[8]
What the cited sources add
An India Today article reports that Congress party president S. Nijalingappa expelled Indira Gandhi from the party for "fostering a cult of personality"[9] The same source notes that senior party members had referred to her as the "gungi gudiya" (dumb doll).[9] The Garibi Hatao Programme account states that Indira's political opponents campaigned on the slogan "Indira Hatao" and she retooled it to "Garibi Hatao" (Remove Poverty).[10] That account adds that the slogan was designed to reach out directly to the poor and marginalised, bypassing the dominant rural castes.[10]
Shrivastava's article on the 1971 war notes that Indira Gandhi wrote to Nixon about the "carnage in East Bengal" and the flood of refugees burdening India.[11] The same article states that on August 9, 1971, she signed a treaty of peace, friendship and cooperation with the Soviet Union.[11] According to Shrivastava, the Soviet Union used its veto power against a UN resolution that demanded a cease-fire, which enabled India to continue its military campaign.[11]
References
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Brahma Chellaney, "Asian Juggernaut: The Rise of China, India, and Japan", HarperCollins, 2006, p. 195; Jacobsen, "Routledge Handbook of Contemporary India", Taylor & Francis, 2023, p. 252 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Smt. Indira Gandhi", pmindia.gov.in (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Bose, "When Democracy Breaks", Oxford University Press, 2024, p. 221–236; Bose, "When Democracy Breaks", Oxford University Press, 2024, p. 221–236 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Frank 2010, p. 13; Pupul Jayakar, "Indira Gandhi: A Biography", Penguin Books India, 27 November 1992, p. 10; Gupte 2012, p. 3; Frank 2010, p. 13; Frank 2010, p. 13 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gupte, "Mother India: a political biography of Indira Gandhi / Pranay Gupte.", Penguin Books, 2011, p. 151–152; Frank 2010, p. 13; Dommermuth-Costa, "Indira Gandhi : daughter of India", Lerner Publications Co, 2002, p. 42–43, 45; "Overview of Indira Gandhi", Encyclopædia Britannica; Frank 2010, p. 13; Gupte 2012, p. 3; "Overview of Indira Gandhi", Encyclopædia Britannica; Gupte 2012, p. 3; Frank 2010, p. 13; Frank 2010, p. 13; Somervill 2007, p. 36; Gupte 2012, p. 3; "Majlis Asian Society", oxfordmajilis.wix; "Oxford Majlis Making Britain en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Sonia assures help for father-in-law's grave", archive.indianexpress.com, 21 November 2005; Iwanek, "The End of India's Nehru-Gandhi Dynasty?", thediplomat.com; Auerbach, "Indira Is India", The Washington Post, 1 November 1984 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Exhibit celebrates 120 years of South Asians at Oxford", University of Oxford, 22 April 2010; "Rahul first in three generations with a world university degree", The Tribune (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Indira Gandhi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Duda, "Indira Gandhi: Life and Legacy", APH Publishing Corporation, 2006, p. 76 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "1969: S. Nijalingappa expelled Indira Gandhi from the party", indiatoday.com. facts only, no text reused. indiatoday.in
- "The Garibi Hatao Programme", indiragandhi.in. facts only, no text reused. indiragandhi.in
- Shrivastava, "1971 India Pakistan War: Role of Russia, China, America and Britain", The World Reporter, 30 October 2011. facts only, no text reused. theworldreporter.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Indira Gandhi (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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