It has been 25 years since prime minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated on Oct 31, 1984. Events of those days are still fresh in memory. Worshipped by her supporters and cursed by her enemies, who later assassinated her, Indira Gandhi paved the way for democracy in India during the twentieth century.
Through the glorious chapters of history, we bring you pictures that bear testimony to?the global icon and woman of substance, Indira Gandhi. (AFP Photo)
''She gave me a set of instructions of how she had to receive the president (Zail Singh) who was returning from a trip abroad and a dinner she was to host for a foreign dignitary that evening. She wanted to ensure there was no clash in timings,'' recounts Dhawan, now 72, often referred to as her factotum, confidant and shadow all rolled into one, and who was associated with her for 22 uninterrupted years.
Text: IANS
Images: AFP
Image: A photo dated 24 January 1976 of Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India in 1974.
All public appointments at the adjoining thick-walled white bungalow in Akbar Road, used for her official engagements, had been cancelled as Gandhi had arrived late from Orissa the previous evening. Only a television interview with two- time Academy award-winning film actor and journalist, Peter Ustinov, was scheduled.
Image: In this picture taken on March 21,1977, then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi is flanked by her sons Sanjay and Rajiv as they walk together in New Delhi.
Indira Gandhi, prime minister of India for 15 years over two terms, died on her way to AIIMS. But she was not declared dead until many hours later. Official accounts spoke of 29 entry and exit wounds; 31 bullets were extracted from her body.
Later, the Justice Thakkar Commission of Inquiry pointed the needle of suspicion to Dhawan for allegedly changing the guard's duties. That was unfounded and Dhawan was exonerated. Sitting in his plush Golf Links residence in New Delhi, Dhawan is out of power now but remains a loyal Congressman with memories of that Oct 31 morning and its aftermath still coming back to haunt.
Image: Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi meets 30 June 1984 with a Sikh delegation at her home in New Delhi.
Instructions were specifically given at the office to be relayed to AIIMS that the prime minister was being brought in. But when they reached the hospital, Dhawan recalls, the authorities were unaware of what had happened. ''Soniaji was at the backseat, Indira Gandhi on her lap while M.L. Fotedar (a trusted Congress loyalist), me and the driver were in the front. I could see she was bleeding profusely.''
Image: In this picture taken on February 25, 1961, then Indian Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru poses with his daughter Indira Gandhi in New Delhi.
Gandhi was not wearing her bulletproof vest that morning, something she was advised to wear after she ordered the army to storm into the Golden Temple in June that year. ''I remember Beant Singh say as he put his revolver down - We have done what we needed to, now you can do what you have to,'' recalls Dhawan, who immediately shouted for help.
Image: Photo taken 18 November 1972 in New Delhi of Roman Catholic nun Mother Teresa with India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
An hour later, everything changed. Dhawan remembers each detail of that terrible morning. ''Just a few days earlier it was Diwali and the gardens of the two houses that are adjoined were being cleaned. She had to wait for a while for the gardeners to clear out to go for the interview and I noticed she was getting restless,'' says Dhawan.
''When we finally got the go-ahead from security after about 10 minutes, I walked alongside her. As we reached the wicker gate that connects both gardens we saw Beant Singh, her Sikh bodyguard and dressed in civilian clothes, approach her.''
Image: This 1975 file photograph shows Iraqi President Saddam Hussein meeting with Indira Gandhi of India in Baghdad.
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