Rajiv Gandhi

Rajiv Gandhi
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Name	Rajiv Gandhi
Office	6th Prime Minister of India
Term start	1984
Term end	1989
Predecessor	Indira Gandhi
Successor	Vishwanath Pratap Singh

Rajiv Gandhi was the sixth Prime Minister of India, serving from 1984 to 1989. He was the son of Indira Gandhi and Feroze Gandhi, and the grandson of Jawaharlal Nehru. Born on August 20, 1944, in Mumbai, India, Rajiv Gandhi was educated at the Doon School in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, and later at Imperial College London and Cambridge University. He was also influenced by his family's involvement in the Indian National Congress and the country's struggle for independence from British Raj.

● Early Life and Education

Rajiv Gandhi's early life was marked by his family's prominent role in Indian politics, with his mother Indira Gandhi serving as the Prime Minister of India and his grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru being the first Prime Minister of India. He was educated at the Doon School in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, where he developed an interest in aerodynamics and aviation. Later, he attended Imperial College London to study mechanical engineering, but did not complete his degree. Instead, he moved to Cambridge University to study engineering, where he met his future wife, Sonia Gandhi. Rajiv Gandhi was also influenced by his family's connections to other prominent Indian National Congress leaders, including Lal Bahadur Shastri and Morarji Desai.

● Career

Before entering politics, Rajiv Gandhi worked as a commercial pilot for Indian Airlines, flying Tupolev Tu-124 and Hawker Siddeley HS 748 aircraft. He was also involved in the Indian National Congress and worked closely with his mother, Indira Gandhi, who was the Prime Minister of India at the time. In 1980, Rajiv Gandhi entered politics and was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Amethi constituency in Uttar Pradesh. He quickly rose through the ranks of the Indian National Congress and became the General Secretary of the party in 1983. During this time, he worked with other prominent leaders, including Pranab Mukherjee and P. V. Narasimha Rao.

● Prime Minister of India

Following the assassination of his mother, Indira Gandhi, in 1984, Rajiv Gandhi became the sixth Prime Minister of India at the age of 40. He led the Indian National Congress to a landslide victory in the 1984 general elections, winning 414 seats in the Lok Sabha. As Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi implemented several policies to modernize and liberalize the Indian economy, including the introduction of IBM PC and Apple Macintosh computers. He also played a key role in the Sri Lankan Civil War, sending Indian Peace Keeping Force troops to the island nation to support the Sri Lankan government against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. During his tenure, he also worked with other world leaders, including Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan.

● Assassination

On May 21, 1991, Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated while campaigning for the Tamil Maanila Congress in the town of Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu. The assassination was carried out by a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam suicide bomber, Thenmozhi Rajaratnam, who detonated a bomb attached to her belt. The assassination was widely condemned by world leaders, including Nelson Mandela and Boris Yeltsin. The event led to a significant increase in security measures for politicians and public figures in India and around the world.

● Legacy

Rajiv Gandhi's legacy is complex and multifaceted. He is remembered for his efforts to modernize and liberalize the Indian economy, as well as his role in promoting science and technology in India. He also played a key role in the Sri Lankan Civil War and was a strong supporter of the Sri Lankan government. However, his tenure was also marked by several controversies, including the Bhopal disaster and the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. Today, Rajiv Gandhi is remembered as a significant figure in Indian history, and his legacy continues to be debated by scholars and politicians, including Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi.

● Personal Life

Rajiv Gandhi was married to Sonia Gandhi, an Italian-born woman who later became the President of the Indian National Congress. The couple had two children, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, both of whom are involved in Indian politics. Rajiv Gandhi was also a close friend and advisor to several other prominent politicians, including P. Chidambaram and Kamal Nath. He was known for his love of aviation and aerodynamics, and was a licensed pilot who flew several types of aircraft, including the MiG-21 and the Boeing 737.