Fell to bullets of trusted guard
The day was October 30, 1984, a day before the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's Assassination, when tens of thousands had gathered in the heart of Bhubaneswar to hear her speech. Among other things, she had said ominously, “I might not be alive tomorrow, but every drop of my blood would strengthen India and keep it united.” Did she have a premonition of her death? A day later, her words came true.
On the morning of October 31, Indira woke up at 4 am after her daughter-in-law Sonia Gandhi suffered from a bout of asthma. Her son Rajiv was away in Kolkata. After enquiring about her condition, she went back to her room. At about 6 am, she did yoga, ate breakfast—half-boiled eggs and fruits—and was ready at 8.30 am for an interview by documentary filmmaker Peter Ustinov for the BBC. Her personal assistant, RK Dhawan briefed her about her pending meetings for the evening. She shared a laugh with her physician, Dr Mathur, who routinely visited her and got her touchup done by makeup artist Pramod Kishan Nigam. At about 9.20 am, she sauntered out of 1, Safdarjung, her official residence, to 1, Akbar Road, her office, which were internally connected via a garden by a relatively smaller passage for convenience.
Bougainvilleas were blooming in the garden, but death was lurking. Unaware, Indira kept walking. She folded her hands to greet one of the security guards, Beant Singh. He would be present every day at the smaller gate. Beant Singh, who had been in her security for the past nine years, did not reciprocate, instead, he held out a service revolver, aimed at her and fired five rounds of bullets from point-blank range at her. She screamed, ‘Kya kar rahe ho?’ Meanwhile, another guard, Satwant Singh, appeared from behind with a sten gun in hand, sweating profusely. Beant Singh shouted at him, ‘Oye chala goli.’ Satwant pumped the entire magazine containing 25 bullets into her body. Indira's screams drowned in the deafening sound of the sten gun.
Beant Singh's transfer orders — following Operation Blue Star — had been revoked by Indira herself. He was killed by ITBP personnel on duty at the time, while Satwant Singh was caught, convicted in 1986 and executed in 1989. Another accomplice, Kehar Singh, was later arrested for being a part of the conspiracy.
Unfortunately, Indira was not wearing her bulletproof jacket that morning. Sonia Gandhi, RK Dhawan, and a few other attendants and security rushed her to hospital. She was administered 88 bottles of blood, but by 1.45 pm, India News Service sent out the bulletin: MRS GANDHI IS DEAD. The then Vice-President R Venkataraman himself announced on All India Radio's 6 pm bulletin that Rajiv Gandhi had been sworn in as the Prime Minister following Indira's death. Her body lay in state for two days at Teen Murti Bhavan, where her father, India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, lived and breathed his last. She was cremated on the banks of the Yamuna, where the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi; her father; and her younger son, Sanjay, had been cremated.
In 1980, Indira had become Prime Minister for the third time, and enjoyed fairly widespread popularity. In June 1984, she ordered Operation Blue Star to flush out armed Sikh extremists led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, setting off a series of threats to her life. The nation was to face a General Election in early 1985.
