Sonia Gandhi Recalls the Darkest Days of Her Life

Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has recalled the emotional trauma she experienced following the assassination of her husband and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991. Speaking in an interview ahead of the release of her memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, she revealed that her sister had suggested returning to Italy when she was struggling to cope with the tragedy. However, Sonia said she could not bring herself to leave India, which she considered her home and the home of her children. Her daughter Priyanka Gandhi also recalled the difficult period, saying her mother would spend hours sitting alone in a dark room, listening to Mozart’s Requiem. Priyanka remembered her mother expressing her grief and asking why Rajiv had left her alone. Sonia also said she later learned that intelligence agencies had reportedly identified threats to Rajiv Gandhi before his assassination. She added that she does not believe the complete truth behind his killing will ever come to light.

Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on May 21, 1991, during an election campaign meeting in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, in a suicide bombing carried out by a woman linked to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The attack also claimed the lives of several others. Born in Italy, Sonia married Rajiv Gandhi in 1968 and moved to India. Although she initially stayed away from politics, her husband's assassination eventually drew her into public life. She took over as Congress president in 1998, and under her leadership, the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) won the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. Despite the victory, she declined the post of Prime Minister. Her memoir revisits her personal journey, family experiences, the loss of her husband and her eventual entry into Indian politics.