Indira Gandhi was one of the most influential and controversial leaders of India. She was the first and only female prime minister of the country, serving for three consecutive terms from 1966 to 1977 and a fourth term from 1980 until her assassination in 1984. She was the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of independent India and a prominent figure in the Indian independence movement.

Early life and education

Indira Priyadarshini Nehru was born on November 19, 1917, in Allahabad, in the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, which is now part of Uttar Pradesh state. Her father, Jawaharlal Nehru, was a lawyer and a leader of the Indian National Congress, the main political party that fought for India's freedom from British rule. Her mother, Kamala Nehru, was a social activist and a devoted wife and mother. Indira was their only child.

Indira grew up in a political environment, witnessing the struggle for independence and the sacrifices made by her father and other freedom fighters. She was educated at home by tutors and later attended Visva-Bharati University in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, where she studied under the guidance of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. She also spent a year at Somerville College, Oxford, in England, but did not complete her degree.

In 1942, she married Feroze Gandhi, a journalist and a fellow member of the Congress party. They had two sons, Rajiv and Sanjay. Feroze died of a heart attack in 1960, leaving Indira a widow at the age of 42.

Political career

Indira joined the Congress party in 1938 and became active in the Quit India movement of 1942, which called for an end to British colonial rule. She was arrested and jailed for her participation in the movement. After India gained independence in 1947, she became a loyal assistant to her father, who became the first prime minister of India. She accompanied him on his domestic and foreign trips and acted as his hostess for official events. She also became involved in various social welfare projects, such as promoting adult literacy, women's empowerment and environmental protection.

She entered politics formally in 1955, when she became a member of the Congress Working Committee, the highest decision-making body of the party. In 1959, she was elected as the president of the party, becoming the first woman to hold that position. In 1964, she was appointed as the minister of information and broadcasting in the cabinet of Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, who succeeded her father after his death.

After Shastri's sudden death in 1966, Indira emerged as the leader of the Congress party and became the prime minister of India. She faced many challenges at home and abroad, such as poverty, unemployment, inflation, droughts, famines, wars with Pakistan and China, regional separatism and internal dissent within her own party. She tackled these problems with determination and courage, earning her the nickname "the Iron Lady of India".

She also pursued an ambitious agenda of economic and social reforms, such as nationalizing major banks and industries, abolishing privy purses (payments to former rulers of princely states), implementing land reforms, launching the Green Revolution (a program to increase agricultural production), promoting family planning and birth control, expanding public education and health care, strengthening foreign relations with non-aligned countries (those that did not align with either the United States or the Soviet Union during the Cold War), supporting Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan in 1971 and conducting India's first nuclear test in 1974.

However, her authoritarian style of governance and her disregard for democratic norms and institutions also earned her many critics and enemies. She faced allegations of corruption, nepotism, censorship and human rights violations. In 1975,

Indira Gandhi:

The Iron Lady of India

Indira Gandhi: A Life of Courage and Leadership

Indira Gandhi was one of the most influential and controversial leaders of India, who served as the prime minister of the country for three consecutive terms from 1966 to 1977 and a fourth term from 1980 until her assassination in 1984. She was the first and only female prime minister of India, and the second longest-serving prime minister after her father, Jawaharlal Nehru, who was also the first prime minister of independent India.

Indira Gandhi was born on November 19, 1917, in Allahabad, in the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, which is now known as Prayagraj, in Uttar Pradesh. She was the only child of Jawaharlal Nehru and Kamala Nehru, who were both prominent figures in the Indian independence movement and members of the Indian National Congress (Congress Party). Her grandfather, Motilal Nehru, was also a leading lawyer and politician who supported Mahatma Gandhi's nonviolent struggle against British colonial rule.

Indira Gandhi had a lonely and troubled childhood, as her parents were often away or imprisoned for their political activities. She also suffered from poor health and had to endure several surgeries. She received her education at various institutions, including Visva-Bharati University in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, where she studied under the guidance of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, and Somerville College, Oxford, in England, where she did not complete her degree. She joined the Congress Party in 1938 and married Feroze Gandhi, a journalist and fellow party member, in 1942. They had two sons, Rajiv and Sanjay.

Indira Gandhi played an active role in her father's political career after India gained independence from Britain in 1947. She acted as his hostess, adviser and confidante, and accompanied him on his domestic and foreign trips. She also held various positions within the Congress Party, such as working committee member, party president and Rajya Sabha member. She became the minister of information and broadcasting in 1964 under Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, who succeeded Nehru after his death.

Indira Gandhi rose to power after Shastri's sudden demise in 1966. She was elected as the leader of the Congress Party by a narrow margin and became the prime minister of India. She faced many challenges and oppositions from within her own party and from other political parties. She also had to deal with various domestic and international issues, such as poverty, unemployment, inflation, corruption, regional conflicts, wars with Pakistan and China, nuclear tests, relations with the Soviet Union and the United States, and the emergence of Bangladesh.

Indira Gandhi proved to be a strong and decisive leader who pursued a socialist and populist agenda. She nationalized major banks and industries, abolished privy purses of former princely states, implemented land reforms and welfare schemes for the poor, launched the Green Revolution to boost agricultural production and food security, promoted science and technology development and space exploration, expanded public education and health care systems, supported women's rights and empowerment, enacted environmental protection laws and initiated family planning programs.

Indira Gandhi also faced criticism and controversy for some of her policies and actions. She was accused of authoritarianism, nepotism, corruption and human rights violations. She imposed a state of emergency in 1975 after a court ruled that she had violated electoral laws in her 1971 election campaign. During the emergency period, she suspended civil liberties, jailed political opponents, censored the media,