Mr.Rajiv Gandhi the 6th prime minister of India (1984-1989)

Rajiv Ratna Gandhi(20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was the 6th Prime Minister of India, serving from 31 October 1984 to 2 December 1989 for 5 years 32 days.He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.Rajiv gandhi is the youngest Prime minister of India at a early age of 40.

His maternal grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru was Prime Minister of India. Gandhi attended college in the United Kingdom. He returned to India in 1966 and became a professional pilot for the state-owned Indian Airlines. In 1968 he married Sonia Gandhi.

His mother Indira Gandhi was prime minister and his brother Sanjay Gandhi a MP

After Sanjay's death in an aeroplane crash in 1980,Rajiv Gandhi entered into politics at the behest of Indira Gandhi.

On the morning of 31 October 1984, his mother was assassinated by two of her bodyguards; later that day, Gandhi was appointed Prime Minister. His leadership was tested over the next few days as organised mobs rioted against the Sikh community, resulting in riots in Delhi.That December, an almost nationwide sympathy vote for the Congress party helped it win its largest Lok Sabha majority to date, 411 seats out of 542.

PERSONAL BACKGROUND

Rajiv Gandhi was born in Bombay on 20 August 1944 to Indira and Feroze Gandhi. In 1951, Rajiv and Sanjay were admitted to Shiv Niketan school, where the teachers said Rajiv was shy and introverted, and "greatly enjoyed painting and drawing".At the age of six, he underwent surgery on his tonsils.He was admitted to the Welham Boys' School and Doon School in 1954, where Sanjay joined him two years later.

Rajiv was sent to London in 1961 to study A-levels. From 1962 to 1965 he studied engineering at Trinity College, Cambridge, but did not obtain a degree.In 1966 he began a course in mechanical engineering at Imperial College London, but did not complete it. Gandhi really was not interested in ‘mugging for his exams’, as he went on to admit later.Gandhi returned to India in 1966, the year his mother became Prime Minister. He went to Delhi and became a member of the Flying Club, where he was trained as a pilot. In 1970, he was employed as a pilot by Air India; unlike Sanjay, he did not exhibit any interest of joining politics.

In 1968, after three years of courtship, he married Edvige Antonia Albina Màino, who changed her name to Sonia Gandhi and made India her home. Their first child, a son, Rahul Gandhi was born in 1970. In 1972, the couple had a daughter, Priyanka Gandhi, who married Robert Vadra.

FAMILY BACKGROUND

He married Edvige Antonia Albina Màino, who changed her name to Sonia Gandhi and made India her home. Their first child, a son, Rahul Gandhi was born in 1970. In 1972, the couple had a daughter, Priyanka Gandhi, who married Robert Vadra.he had one brother who was also an Indian politician.

Father-Feroz Gandhi

Mother-Indira Gandhi

Brother - Sanjay Gandhi

Spouse-Edvige Antonia Albina Màino(sonia Gandhi)

Son-Rahul Gandhi

Daughter- Priyanka Gandhi

Son in law-Robert Vadra(who married Priyanka Gandhi)

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND

Rajiv was sent to London in 1961 to study A-levels. From 1962 to 1965 he studied engineering at Trinity College, Cambridge, but did not obtain a degree.[5] In 1966 he began a course in mechanical engineering at Imperial College London, but did not complete it. He went to Delhi and became a member of the Flying Club, where he was trained as a pilot. In 1970, he was employed as a pilot by Air India; unlike Sanjay, he did not exhibit any interest of joining politics.

Political Career

Starting his career-

Rajiv had no inclination to follow his family’s tradition and join politics. It was his younger brother Sanjay Gandhi who was being groomed to take up the helms of the political legacy. But Sanjay’s premature death in a plane crash changed Rajiv’s destiny. The senior members of the Indian National Congress party approached Rajiv Gandhi to persuade him to join politics but Rajiv was reluctant and said "no" to them. His wife, Sonia Gandhi, also stood by Rajiv's position of not entering into politics. But after constant request from his mother Indira Gandhi, he decided to contest. His entry was criticized by many in the press, public and opposition. They saw the entry of Nehru-Gandhi scion into politics as a forced-hereditary-participation. Within a few months of his election as a Member of Parliament from Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajiv Gandhi acquired significant party influence and became an important political advisor to his mother. He was also elected as the general secretary of the All-India Congress Committee and subsequently became the president of the Youth Congress.

Prime Minister of India-

Following the assassination of Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984, by her bodyguards at her New Delhi residence, Rajiv Gandhi was sworn as the Prime Minster. The Congress Party, riding high on the tragedy, witnessed a landslide victory in the parliamentary following elections.

Assassination

Rajiv Gandhi's last public meeting was on 21 May 1991, at Sriperumbudur, a village approximately 40 km (25 mi) from Madras, where he was assassinated while campaigning for the Sriperumbudur Lok Sabha Congress candidate. At 10:10 pm, a woman later identified as Thenmozhi Rajaratnam, approached Gandhi in public and greeted him. She then bent down to touch his feet and detonated a belt laden with 700 g (1.5 lb) of RDX explosives tucked under her dress.Veer Bhumi at Delhi, where Rajiv Gandhi was cremated

The explosion killed Gandhi, Rajaratnam, and at least 25 other people. The assassination was captured by a 21 year old local photographer, whose camera and film were found at the site. The cameraman, named Haribabu, died in the blast but the camera remained intact.Gandhi's mutilated body was airlifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi for post-mortem, reconstruction and embalming.A state funeral was held for Gandhi on 24 May 1991; it was telecast live and was attended by dignitaries from over 60 countries.He was cremated at Veer Bhumi, on the banks of the river Yamuna near the shrines of his mother (Indira Gandhi), brother (Sanjay Gandhi), and grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru.

HE RECEIVED HONORARY AWARDS SUCH AS BHARATH RATNA AND INDIRA GANDHI PRIZE