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Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India, was assassinated on October 31, 1984. [1] She was killed by two of her Sikh bodyguards,[2] Satwant Singh and Beant Singh, to avenge the military attack on the Harmandir Sahib (Sikhism's holiest shrine, also called "The Golden Temple") during Operation Blue Star.[3]
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Assassination
Mrs. Gandhi was on her way to be interviewed by the British actor Peter Ustinov, who was filming a documentary for Irish television. She was walking through the garden of the Prime Minister's Residence at No. 1, Safdarjung Road in New Delhi. As she passed a wicket gate guarded by Satwant Singh and Beant Singh, they opened fire. Beant Singh fired three rounds into her from his side-arm, and Satwant Singh then fired 30 rounds from his sten gun into her prostrate body. Beant Singh was shot dead by other bodyguards at the scene of the assassination. Satwant Singh was arrested by Mrs. Gandhi's other bodyguards.
Death
Mrs. Gandhi was rushed to AIIMS immediately after the shooting. She died one hour later, undergoing surgery to remove 7 of the 19 bullets that wounded her. She was cremated on November 3, near Raj Ghat (a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi) at an area named Shakti Sthal.
Aftermath
Over the next four days thousands of Sikhs were killed in retaliatory violence. The most affected regions were neighborhoods in Delhi.
The Justice Thakkar Commission of Inquiry set up to probe Indira Gandhi’s assassination recommended a separate probe for the conspiracy angle behind the assassination. The Thakkar Report stated that the “needle of suspicion” pointed at R.K. Dhawan for complicity in the conspiracy.
Satwant Singh and conspirator Kehar Singh were sentenced to death. The sentence was carried out on January 6, 1989. Satwant Singh was the last man to be hanged in Tihar Jail in Delhi.
See also
References
- ^ "Assassination in India: A Leader of Will and Force; Indira Gandhi, Born to Politics, Left Her Own Imprint on India". November 1, 1984. http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/1119.html. Retrieved January 23, 2009.
- ^ "1984: Assassination and revenge". http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/witness/october/31/newsid_3961000/3961851.stm. Retrieved January 23, 2009.
- ^ "1984: Indian prime minister shot dead". http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/31/newsid_2464000/2464423.stm. Retrieved 23 January 2009.
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