RajivGandhiBiography

Rajiv Gandhi served as the sixth Prime Minister of India. Gothrough this biography to know in details about his life, profile,careerandtimeline.

QuickFacts

Nationality Indian

Religion Hindu

Politicalideology

IndianNationalCongress

Bornon 20August1944AD

ZodiacSign

Leo

Bornin Mumbai

Diedon 21May1991AD

Placeofdeath

Sriperumbudur

Father FerozeGandhi

Mother IndiraGandhi

Spouse: SoniaGandhi(m.1968–1991)

Children Rahul,Priyanka

EducationTrinityCollege,Cambridge,ImperialCollegeLondon,UniversityofCambridge,TheDoonSchool

Awards 1991-BharatRatna

QuickFacts

A Nehru-Gandhi scion, Rajiv Gandhi was one of the mostpopular politicians of India, who went on to become the PrimeMinister of the country. Interestingly, this political stalwartwasn’t even interested in joiningpolitics, leavealonebecomingthe leader of nation. Trained as a commercial pilot, he washappy in his life which was extremely private sans all publicattention, until a tragic accident changed the course of his lifeandhisfamily.Hisbrother,SanjayGandhidiedinaplanecrashleaving behind a void that could be filled by none other thanRajiv Gandhi. To fill in the void, he stepped into his brother’sshoesquitereluctantlybutwithinashortspanoftimebecameafrontrunner in Indian politics. Today, the era under his primeministership is regarded as one of themost progressive times.He laid the foundation of information technology revolutionwhose rewardsweare reaping today.Hespread thenetworkoftelephones to the rural and remote corners of the countrythrough PCOs (Public Call Offices). He also brought a positiveuproar in the educational sector by launching the nationaleducational policy. In addition to this, he set up schools,colleges and institutions and gave a fillip to higher education.To knowmore about his life, career, profile and timeline, readon.

Childhood&Early Life

RajivGandhiwas born in India’s politically affluent familyto Feroze Gandhi, member of the Indian NationalCongress party and editor of the National Heraldnewspaper,andIndiraGandhi.

StrainedrelationshipofhisparentsledtohisrelocationtoDelhi along with his mother and younger brother. It wasduringthis timethathismothercontributedsignificantly inthe Indian political scenario, assisting her fatherJawaharlal Nehru who was serving as the PrimeMinisterofthecountry.

Academically, he attained his preliminary education fromWelhamsBoys’SchoolandTheDoonSchool inDehradunbefore moving to London to complete his A levels. Heenrolledat theTrinityCollegeCambridge in1962tostudyengineering. Four years henceforth, he moved out butwithoutadegree.

Following year, i.e. in 1966, he was offered a seat atImperialCollegeLondon,whichhetookupbutayearlaterdropped out of the same too. Same year, his motherascendedtopremiership.

Upon returning to India, he, unlike his family members,was dispassionate about politics and instead took toworkingasaprofessionalpilotforIndianAirlines.

The tragic untimely death of his younger brother, SanjayGandhi, in1980changedthecourseofhis life,ashewasforcedtoenterpolitics.

PoliticalCareerSuccumbing to the pressure of the Congress partypoliticians and his mother, he reluctantly made his entryinto the world of politics, a move that earned the wrathfrom press, public and opposition politicians as they sawhisemergenceasaforcedhereditaryparticipation.

Soon, he found himself in themidst of active politics. Heacquired significant party influence and became animportantpoliticaladvisor.

In1981,hewonAmethiLokSabhaseat,onceheldbyhisbrother,bydefeatingSharadYadav.

In 1982, he became member of the Asian GamesOrganizingCommitteeandplayedavitalroleinsuccessfulconductofthegames.

In the subsequent years, he was elected as the GeneralSecretary of the All India Congress Committee and waschosenasthePresidentoftheYouthCongress.Pressandpublic criticized thismoveas hismother ’s effort to groomhimforprimeministerialship.

Following the assassination of hismother onOctober 31,1984, he succeeded her to become the PrimeMinister ofthe country. He was also unanimously elected as thePresidentoftheCongressParty.

A freshelectionwas calledby thePresidentZailSingh inwhich the Congress party won a landslide victory, andRajivGandhibecamePrimeMinisteronceagain.

During his tenure as the prime minister, he broughtenergy,enthusiasm,andvisiontoacountrydividedonthebasis of creed, casteand religion.Securinghis office, hefirst resolved to deal with the Punjab problem whichcausedturbulenceinthecountry.

He worked towards eliminating the corrupt and criminalpoliticians from the Congress party and looked to bringaboutreformsinthebureaucracy.

Itwasduringhispremiership that scienceand technologywere given foremost impetus. He worked to raise theeducational standard by both modernizing and expandingthe sector so as to be reachable to the masses againstthelimitedfew.Itwasduringhisrulethataneweducationpolicy was framed and Indira Gandhi Open NationalUniversitywasestablished.

On the foreign policy front, unlike his predecessors, hetook a liberal view and looked to modify the bilateralrelations with the United States by expanding economicandscientificcooperation.

He promoted a sustained and continued cooperationamong members of the South Asian Association forRegional Cooperation Countries (SAARC). Furthermore,hebroughtforthanactionplanbeforetheSpecialSessiononDisarmamentattheUnitedNations.

During his reign, he brought about a revolution incountry’s information technology and telecom industry, byinitiating MTNL Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited in1986.

However, not all was glorious and magnificent during histenure as the Prime Minister as the time was marked bynumerous controversies. The biggest industrial disastertook place in Bhopal at a Union Carbide plant whichcaused poisonous gas leak that took an estimated 16000livesandinjuredmorethanhalfamillion.

The Bofors scandal was yet another black mark in hiscareer. It involved alleged payoffs by the Swedish Boforsarms company through Italian businessman and Gandhifamily associate Ottavio Quattrocchi, in return for Indiancontracts. The scandal shattered his image of honestpolitician.

In1987,hesenttheIndianPeaceKeepingForce(IPKF)toend the Sri Lankan Civil War between the LiberationTigersofTamilEelam (LTTE)and theSriLankanmilitary.This action earned him the wrath of Sri Lankan politicalpartiesaswellasLTTE.

Controversies,scandalsanddisastersmarredthebeliefofpeople in Congress and Rajiv Gandhi’s popularitydeclined rapidly. In the 1989 general elections, Congressemergedas thesingle largestpartybutcouldnotachievemajority. Rajiv Gandhi resigned from the post of PrimeMinister and in his place V.P. Singh became the PrimeMinister. Rajiv Gandhi was elected as the Leader of theOpposition.

Rajiv Gandhi’s last public meeting was at Sriperumbuduron May 21, 1991, where he was campaigning for Lok

Sabha elections. He was assassinated by a suicidebomberatthemeeting.

Awards&AchievementsIn 1991 he was awarded Bharat Ratna posthumously,India’shighestcivilianaward.

PersonalLife &LegacyDuring his college days in London, he fell in lovewith anItalian girl, named Albina Maino, who later came to beknown as Sonia Gandhi. They married in 1968. Thecouple was blessed with two children, son Rahul Gandhiin1970anddaughterPriyankaGandhiin1972.

Hewasassassinatedbya female suicidebomberonMay21, 1991 at a public meeting in Sriperumbudur. Thewoman bomber bent down to touch his feet, detonating abeltladenwith700gramsofRDXexplosives.Themassiveexplosion took the life of about 25 people includingRajivGandhi.

Three days later, onMay 24, 1991, hewas given a statefuneralandlatercrematedaccordingtoHinduritualonthebanksof theriverYamuna.Thesite is todayknownasVirBhumi.

Triv iaThis politician was the son of a politically power Nehru-Gandhi family. Though politics ran in the blood of thisyoung and energetic gentleman, he aspired to become apilotandalsostartedhiscareerasapilot.