When it comes to famous people in India's history, it is estimated that we can not call out many names, and even the name of "Mahatma Gandhi" is far less famous than the movie star Aamir Khan. In addition to this "Mahatma", there is also an "Iron Lady" in India, who is also called Gandhi. This is the first female prime minister in The history of India, the "Iron Lady of India" - Indira Gandhi.
First of all, you have to know that a woman serving as prime minister is a unique thing in The history of India, because India is a relatively traditional country and the status of women is relatively low. Even high-caste white-skinned Indians have long held this notion. But "Mrs. Gandhi" eventually rose to prominence, and in 1966, after she officially took office, she began her extraordinary and legendary life. Compared with Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom and Mrs. Merkel in Germany, her name is more than ten to several decades earlier, which is the eldest sister of the eldest sister. Of course, we must state that she is not related to Mahatma Gandhi in any way. She was born into the Nehru-Gandhi family, a large Indian family, the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister after independence, and it can be said that she belongs to the same aristocratic family as Mahatma Gandhi.
Mrs. Gandhi had a good reputation throughout her life, but such a good person was shot and stabbed by two of her Sikh bodyguards on October 31, 1984, and was killed on the spot after being shot 16 times. It turned out that the person who should have protected her life ended her life, and what was it all for?
All this may be predestined, stemming from the sectarian strife peculiar to India.
India is a country full of religious beliefs, even a single grass can be considered a god, not to mention those sacred monkeys and sacred cows. In India, in addition to the largest and most mainstream Hinduism, there are many religious sects, including Sikhism. Sikhism is a great religion with countless congregations. Buddhism, which originated in India, is not much followed.
Sikhs can be described as India's "fighting people", they are militaristic and heroic. They often add "Singer" to their names, which means lion, and they wish they could tear apart all their prey like a lion.
But these "lions" did not resist the British in the 19th century, and after India became British India, Sikhism became the main force trained by the British army. These "lions" with strange turbans followed the British army around the world, and it was not until the end of World War II that they were completely freed from the control of the British Empire.
Insert an interesting little history, when the British fat beat the Qing Dynasty, after the establishment of concessions in Shanghai and Tianjin, those bodyguards, patrols, and janitors wearing red turbans were often these Sikhs from India, and Shanghainese called them "red-headed Asan". The last two words have been passed down to this day, and like "sticks", they have become nouns with national characteristics.
When India became independent, the Sikhs also demanded independence and established their own Sikh kingdom. Of course, this is not allowed. In this way, in the years to come, Hinduism and Sikhism began a battle that lasted for more than forty years.
By the 1980s, there had been more than 1,200 clashes between Sikhism and Hinduism alone from 1982 to 1984, killing and injuring countless people. The Sikhs were relatively strong, and their fighting power was indeed very strong, which caused the Indian government a headache for them, and Mrs. Gandhi was also "deeply affected".
The Iron Lady of India, who transformed India from a chronic food shortage to a food exporter and ended the Third Indo-Pakistani War, and also assisted in the independence of East Pakistan, founded Bangladesh but was considered an enemy by sikhs, and Mrs. Gandhi did not like them, nor did they like Mrs. Gandhi. Mrs. Gandhi repeatedly courted him, but the other party often scoffed. As the friction between believers intensified in the 1980s, it also heralded the end of Mrs. Gandhi's fate.
On June 3, 1984, Mrs. Gandhi ordered the Indian Army to invade the Sikh shrine of the Golden Temple, an incident that killed hundreds of people. On October 31 of the same year, Mrs. Gandhi was assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards in the Prime Minister's Office with revolvers and submachine guns, at the age of 67, ending her 16-year rule over India.
The killer, Bent Singh, followed Mrs. Gandhi at the age of 24 and remained loyal to her for ten years. No one expected this loyal bodyguard to do such a thing, and some claimed that Sikhs taught Bent Singer $100,000 to do it, but Bent Singer did not accept the huge amount of dollar money.
On the day of the incident, he filled the magazine with bullets and stood guard in the narrow corridor he was familiar with as usual. When Mrs. Gandhi appeared, he pulled out his revolver and aimed it at Mrs. Gandhi's chest.
Mrs. Gandhi shouted, "Are you crazy?" ”
Before the words could be heard, five gunshots had already sounded, and Mrs. Gandhi was shot and fell to the ground. Another bodyguard, Satwand Singh, picked up his submachine gun and continued shooting. A total of 16 of the 25 bullets fired from the magazine were fired by the two men, killing Mrs. Gandhi on the spot.
Of course, Bent Singh and Satwant Singh did not think of escaping, they were surrounded by guards, Bent Singh was shot on the spot, satwand Singh was seriously injured and arrested.
Her son, Rajiv Gandhi, who became Prime Minister of India after his mother's death, was assassinated in May 1991, just like his mother.
Shortly before her assassination, Mrs. Gandhi had said this passage: "I have devoted my whole life to the service of India. Even if I die, I believe that every drop of my blood will be used to feed India and make her stronger. Later, many Indian people remembered this "Indian Iron Lady" and called her "Indian Mother".