Press Reports of the Time


It is interesting to recall how the press in India and abroad reported this most eventful day:
Mrs. Gandhi is the second woman in history to hold the office of Prime Minister. The first was Mrs. Sirimavo Bandarnaike of Ceylon.

"As Mrs. Gandhi left the hall of Parliament building where the election had taken place, crowds showered her with flower petals. She kissed many women Members of Parliament, including her aunt, Mrs. Vijayalakshmi Pandit. Earlier, one of the women members had pinned on her shawl a red rosebud like those her father, India's first Prime Minister, always wore in his buttonhole.

"Security men had to link arms to save Mrs. Gandhi from being knocked over as she passed through the cheering crowds. Many people were pushed into empty ornamental pools.

"Mrs. Gandhi began her day with a pilgrimage to the shrines of Indian Independence. Early in the morning, she visited the cremation sites of Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Nehru and the monuments raised in their honour. After having placed offerings and recited prayers, Mrs. Gandhi went to the former residence of her family now transformed into a museum. She stood for a long time in front of a portrait of her father and wept before leaving hurriedly to go to Parliament where the election was to take place.

"After her election, Mrs. Gandhi called on President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan at Rashtrapati Bhavan, the presidential palace adjoining Parliament. The President asked her to form a government.

Source: http://indiragandhi.in/en/philosophy/speeches/2
Location: New Delhi, Delhi, India

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