Jawaharlal Nehru Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964), the Indian nationalist leader and statesman who became the first prime minister of independent India in 1947 is considered to be the architect of modern Indian nation-state; a sovereign, socialist, secular, and democratic republic. He was born in Allahabad, the son of a lawyer whose family was originally from Kashmir. He was educated in England, at Harrow School, and then at Trinity College, Cambridge. He studied law at the Inner Temple in London. He returned to India in 1912 and practiced law for some years. In 1916, he married Kamala Kaul and the following year they had a daughter, Indira. In 1919, Nehru joined the Indian National Congress which was fighting for greater autonomy from the British. He was heavily influenced by the organization’s leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. During the 1920s and 1930s Nehru was repeatedly imprisoned by the British for civil disobedience. In 1928, he was elected president of the Congress. By the end of World War Two, Nehru was recognized as Gandhis successor. He played a central role in the negotiations over Indian independence. He opposed the Muslim Leagues insistence on the division of India on the basis of religion. Louis Mountbatten, the last British viceroy, advocated the division as the fastest and most workable solution and Nehru reluctantly agreed. On 15 August 1947, Nehru became the first prime minister of independent India. He held the post until his death in 1964. As Prime Minister, Nehru set out to realize his vision of India. The Constitution of India was enacted in 1950, after which he embarked on an ambitious program of economic, social and political reforms. Chiefly, he oversaw Indias transition from a monarchy to a republic, while nurturing a plural, multi-party democracy. In foreign policy, Nehru took a leading role in Non-Alignment against the background of the Cold War; he developed a policy of positive neutrality for India. He became one of the key spokesmen for the non-aligned countries of Africa and Asia, many of which were former colonies that wanted to avoid dependence on any major power. Despite efforts at cooperation by both countries, Indian-Chinese border disputes escalated into war in 1962 and Indian forces were decisively beaten. This had a significant impact on Nehrus declining health. He died on 27 May 1964. Two years later Nehrus daughter, Indira Gandhi, became prime minister. With an interruption of only three years, she held the post until her assassination in 1984. (Today, i.e. 14th November 2013, India is paying tribute to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on his 124th birth anniversary) Courtesy: BBC Chandra Shekar
Posted on: Thu, 14 Nov 2013 14:37:05 +0000
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