In
her years in continental Europe and the UK, she met a Parsi,
Feroze Gandhi, (Feroze Khan born to Nawab Khan and Ghandy who
was a Parsi changed his surname to Gandhi after marriage with
Indira) a Congress activist, and eventually married him on 16
March 1942 at Anand Bhawan Allahabad in a private Adi Dharm
Brahmo Vedic ceremony still noted for its unconventionality.
The
marriage was opposed by orthodox Hindus because it was an
inter communal love marriage not arranged by her parents.
Jawaharlal Nehru too opposed the marriage on grounds that
the couple was somewhat incompatible because both possessed
fiery tempers. Publicly, however, both Jawaharlal Nehru and
Mahatma Gandhi strenuously defended the marriage. Shortly
after their marriage just before the beginning of the Quit
India Movement - the final, all-out national revolt launched
by Mahatma Gandhi and the Congress Party. In September 1942,
Indira & Feroze were arrested by the British authorities
and detained without charge. She was ultimately released on
13 May 1943, having spent about 243 days in jail and Feroze
Gandhi after a year. In 1944,
she gave birth to Rajiv Gandhi with Feroze Gandhi, followed
by Sanjay Gandhi. After the release Feroze Gandhi became editor
of The National Herald, a newspaper founded by Jawaharlal
Nehru, and Mrs. Indira Gandhi became the principal confidant
and assistant of her father during the period of Nehru's prime
ministership (1947-1965). Their marriage started out well,
but deteriorated later when she moved to New Delhi to be at
the side of her father, the Prime Minister at the time, who
was living alone in a high-pressure environment at Teen Murti
Bhavan. She became his confidante, secretary and nurse. Her
sons lived with her, but she eventually separated from Feroze,
though they remained legally married.
The couple separated for a number of years during the 1950s
as Feroze Gandhi launched his own political career in Parliament
and was often at odds with Jawaharlal Nehru's policies and
style. In 1959 Indira Gandhi became President of the Indian
National Congress and in 1964 she was elected to the Parliament.
Meanwhile, the death of Feroze Gandhi (by a heart attack)
in 1960, and the subsequent death of her father in 1964, forced
Indira Gandhi to withdraw into a shell and limit herself to
her immediate family.
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