25 Years Since Indira Gandhi's Assassination

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the assassination of Indira Gandhi, then prime minister of India. She remains a figure who inspires mixed feelings at home as well as abroad, and although she was a powerful influence on India's standing in the world her commitment to democracy at home was tempered by her dynastic background. Perhaps the qualities which made her a good war leader were the same which made her an increasingly authoritarian figure at home, and her momory invites as many detractors as it does admirers.

However, she remains one of the few women to have led one of the larger nations of the world, and one of the very few who can be named outside her own country. A good (brief) analysis of her life and contribution can be found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/8320101.stm