Get Daily Updates In Email
You must have seen Sonia Gandhi in a proper traditional avatar holding the reins of Congress Party. His son Rahul Gandhi would take over the charge as President of Congress on December 16.
However, she isn’t just an influential person but a beautiful lady also. People born in 90s and after knows her to be a dominant lady ‘Jisne ek sardar ko chup kra dia’ (as they say).
But her journey has not been easy. She was born as Sonia Maino in Italy.
After completing her primary education, she moved to Cambridge for higher education.
She went to Cambridge in the year 1964 to study English.
She worked as a waitress and fell in love with Rajiv Gandhi who was an engineering student.
They both tied knot in 1968. She then got the Indian Citizenship and started living with her mother-in-law Indira Gangi who was the then Prime Minister of India.
The couple was blessed with son Rahul Gandhi and daughter Priyanka Vadra. The couple initially avoided getting into politics.
Rajiv worked as an airline pilot, whereas Sonia was into the family and kids.
But then, Rajiv had to enter politics after the death of his brother Sanjay Gandhi in a plane crash on 23 June 1980. Rajiv became the 6th Prime Minister of India from 1984 to 1989.
While Rajiv Gandhi acted as the Prime Minister, Sonia became Rajiv’s official administrator. This marked her entry in Politics.
Rajiv Gandhi was murdered in 1991 which turned her world upside down. At that time, Sonia refused to become the Prime Minister. The Indian National Congress party then decided to make P. V. Narasimha Rao the leader and subsequently Prime Minister.
Sonia changed her mind and decided to revive the party. She joined the party in 1997. She became party leader in 1998.
In 1999, when leaders challenged Sonia’s right to try to become a Prime Minister because of her foreign origins, she offered to resign.
In August 2011, she underwent successful surgery for cervical cancer. After returning to India from the US and spoke about her son, Rahul, taking a larger role in the party.
Sonia was listed as the 9th most powerful woman by Forbes Magazine.
In 2013, Sonia Gandhi was ranked 21st among world’s most powerful people and 9th most powerful woman by Forbes Magazine.
Sonia was also named among the Time’s 100 most influential people in the world for the years 2007 and 2008.
No comments:
Post a Comment