From the archives

When It Became Clear That Indira Gandhi Would Become Congress President

Swarajya Archives

Nov 14, 2017, 08:46 PM | Updated 08:46 PM IST


 India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru (1869-1964), with his daughter Indira Gandhi (born Indira Priyardarshini Nehru, 1917-1984), the future prime minister. (Monty Fresco/Topical Press Agency/Getty Images)
India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru (1869-1964), with his daughter Indira Gandhi (born Indira Priyardarshini Nehru, 1917-1984), the future prime minister. (Monty Fresco/Topical Press Agency/Getty Images)
  • From the 24 January 1959 edition of Swarajya, a report recounting the near-unanimous support for Indira Gandhi to be elevated to the role of Congress party president.
  • She “will be the third woman and the second Indian woman to wear the Congress crown”, said the report, which is reproduced below in two images.
  • All these years later, it’s striking how similar the situation is today.
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