Indira Gandhi: The Insecure

By sheer stroke of luck, in 1983 – during the AP Assembly election campaign at the dawn of NTR’s Telugu Desam – I happened to see Smt. Indira Gandhi from less than 50 yards away. While her motorcade passed us, she was waving at the crowds from inside her car. Despite my personal dislike for Congress Party and her politics, this was a memorable moment for me. She has a mesmerizing appearance. I can see why crowds adored her.

I always thought that Indira Gandhi was a strong leader and she had the mettle to be a decisive leader and lead the country into prosperity. In fact, her decisive qualities were overshadowed by her insecurities. She always played wicked politics to retain power than doing the right thing to lead the country. That is not to say that she hasn’t done some right things.

I just happen to stumble across this fascinating video of her 1975 interview with a CBC journalist soon after the declaration of Emergency. As many of you know, she declared Emergency to remain in power following Allahabad High Court verdict that her election was invalid.

Watch her impatient body language. It is quite telling. I believe she pretty much acted like she did in this video in most of her interviews.