Rajiv Gandhi Birth Anniversary: 8 Interesting Facts About The Youngest Prime Minister Of India

Rajiv Gandhi was the youngest Prime Minister India had. He became active in politics when he was in his thirties and became India’s Prime Minister at the age of 40.

Bhopal, India: Rajiv Gandhi sits on a platform during a rally held in the city of Bhopal, India. The city was recently the stage for the worst industrial accident in modern history when tons of toxic gas leaked out of a Union Carbide plant.

Former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi would turn 76 today, had he not been assassinated by a human bomb in the year 1991. The country marks his birthday as Sadbhavana Divas with an aim to encourage national integration, love, and peace among all communities. His death anniversary is also observed as Anti-Terrorism day. Former Congress president and Rajiv Gandhi’s son Rahul Gandhi tweeted an emotional message remembering his father. “Rajiv Gandhi was a man with a tremendous vision, far ahead of his times. But above all else, he was a compassionate and loving human being. I am incredibly lucky and proud to have him as my father. We miss him today and everyday,” Gandhi tweeted.

Rajiv Gandhi was a man with a tremendous vision, far ahead of his times. But above all else, he was a compassionate and loving human being. I am incredibly lucky and proud to have him as my father. We miss him today and everyday. pic.twitter.com/jWUUZQklTi

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 20, 2020

Prime Minister Modi also remembered the former Prime Minister on his birth anniversary. “On his birth anniversary, tributes to former Prime Minister Shri Rajiv Gandhi Ji,” PM Modi wrote. Here are some lesser known facts about Rajiv Gandhi:

• Rajiv Gandhi was the youngest Prime Minister India had. He became active in politics when he was in his thirties and became India’s Prime Minister at the age of 40.
• Rajiv Gandhi was the last member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to hold the position of prime minister in India.
• Rajiv Gandhi was perhaps one of the only prime ministers of the country who frequently drove himself around, reports state that he used to drive around even during his election campaigns.
• Rajiv Gandhi studied engineering at Trinity College in Cambridge, but did not obtain a degree. He then studied mechanical engineering at Imperial College London but did not complete that either. He returned to India in 1966 joined the Flying Club in Delhi where he was trained as a pilot and became a professional pilot for the state-owned Indian Airlines.

• In 1968, he married Sonia Gandhi; the couple settled in Delhi to a domestic life with their children Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
• Rajiv Gandhi remained an apolitical person despite being born in the family of Prime Ministers. However, after brother Sanjay Gandhi’s death in a plane crash in 1980, Gandhi reluctantly entered politics at the behest of mother Indira Gandhi.
• Gandhi's first action as Prime Minister was passing the anti-defection law in January 1985. According to this law, an elected Member of Parliament or legislative assembly could not join an opposition party until the next election.
• Rajiv Gandhi had a versatile personality. He had a keen interest in photography. After his death,  Sonia Gandhi, came out with his collection “Rajiv’s world: Photographs by Rajiv Gandhi,” in 1995