Indira Gandhi

Indira Gandhi, daughter of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, is the only woman who served as the Prime Minister of India. Born in the political family, she was the second longest serving Prime Minister of the country after her father. She was appointed the President of Congress party in 1959 and also served as her father's personal assistant from 1947 till 1964. After Nehru's death in 1964, she served as a Cabinet minister under Lal Bahadur Shastri's leadership but later became Prime Minister of the country in 1966 after Shastri's sudden death. From 1966 to 1977, she was able to retain the position but lost after an emergency was imposed by her in 1975 leading to a national discontent and countrywide protests. She returned to power in 1980 and during this time she ordered storming of Sikh Holy Shrine Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar and was assasinated on October 31, 1984 by her two Sikh bodyguards. Violence erupted in several parts of the country after her death in which Sikhs were killed by angry protesters. She was known for her strong personality and also went to war with Pakistan supporting the Independence Movement in East Pakistan leading to formation of Bangladesh. In 1999, Indira Gandhi was named 'Woman of the Millennium' by a BBC poll.