Lal Bahadur Shastri was an Indian politician and statesman who served as the second Prime Minister of India from 1964 to 1966.
Lal Bahadur Shastri Biography
| Birth | October 2, 1904 |
| birth place | Mughalsarai, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh |
| Parents | Sharda Prasad Srivastava (father) and Ramdulari Devi (mother) |
| Wife | Lalita Devi |
| Children | Kusum, Hari Krishna, Suman, Anil, Sunil and Ashok |
| political party | Indian National Congress |
| death | January 11, 1966 |
| Memorial | Vijay Ghat, New Delhi |
Lal Bahadur Shastri was born on October 2, 1904 in the small town of Mughalsarai in British India. Shastri ji was born on 2 October 1904 in Mughalsarai to Sharda Prasad Srivastava and Ramdulari Devi.
He attended East Central Railway Inter College and Harish Chandra High School, which he left to join the non-cooperation movement. He worked for the welfare of Harijans in Muzaffarpur and dropped his caste-derived surname “Srivastava”.
He was a devoted follower of Mahatma Gandhi and, inspired by the principles of non-violence and civil disobedience, actively participated in India’s fight for independence. He was arrested several times by the British authorities due to his involvement in various protests and movements.
Ministerial Position
With India’s independence in 1947, Shastri transformed from a freedom fighter to a politician. He became a prominent member of the Indian National Congress and held key ministerial positions in the post-independence government. He served as Railway Minister, Home Minister and Foreign Minister.
Prime Minister of India
The turning point in Shastri’s political career came in 1964 when he was elected as the Prime Minister of India after the death of Jawaharlal Nehru. His leadership was characterized by his humble and down to earth personality. He advocated economic self-reliance and stressed the need for national unity and self-reliance.
India-Pakistan war of 1965
One of the most challenging periods of Shastri’s prime ministership was the India-Pakistan war of 1965. His famous slogan, “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan” (Hail to the soldier, Hail to the farmer) reflected his vision for a strong, united India. This phrase highlighted the importance of both the military and agricultural sectors in the development of the country.
Tashkent Agreement
Shastri’s commitment to peace was evident when he worked to end the conflict and initiated peace talks with Pakistan. In January 1966, he traveled to Tashkent, then part of the Soviet Union, to sign the Tashkent Agreement with Pakistan President Ayub Khan. Sadly, he died in Tashkent the day after the agreement under circumstances that remain a matter of speculation.
End time
Lal Bahadur Shastri died under mysterious circumstances on January 11, 1966. Lal Bahadur Shastri’s legacy endures as a symbol of simplicity, integrity and unwavering dedication to the service of the nation. His brief but influential tenure as Prime Minister of India left an indelible mark on the country’s history. Shastri ji remained known for his honesty and humility throughout his life. He was posthumously awarded Bharat Ratna. His monument is known as “Vijay Ghat” in Delhi.
Bharat Ratna Award List
| Year | Recipients | About |
| Bharat Ratna 1954 | C. Rajagopalachari | Activist, statesman, and lawyer |
| Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan | India’s first Vice-President and second President | |
| C. V. Raman | Physicists, mathematicians, and scientists | |
| Bharat Ratna 1955 | Bhagwan Das | Activist, philosopher, and educationist |
| M. Visvesvaraya | Civil engineer, statesman, and Diwan of Mysore | |
| Jawaharlal Nehru | Activist and author served as the Prime Minister of India | |
| Bharat Ratna 1957 | Govind Ballabh Pant | Activist and first Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh |
| Bharat Ratna 1958 | Dhondo Keshav Karve | Social reformer and educator |
| Bharat Ratna 1961 | Bidhan Chandra Roy | Physician, political leader, philanthropist, educationist, and social worker |
| Purushottam Das Tandon | Activist and speaker of the United Provinces Legislative Assembly | |
| Bharat Ratna 1962 | Rajendra Prasad | Activist, lawyer, statesman, and scholar |
| Bharat Ratna 1963 | Zakir Husain | Activist, economist, and education philosopher served as a Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University and the Governor of Bihar |
| Pandurang Vaman Kane | Indologist and Sanskrit scholar, known for his five-volume literary work | |
| Bharat Ratna 1966 | Lal Bahadur Shastri | Activist and served as the second Prime Minister of India |
| Bharat Ratna 1971 | Indira Gandhi | First women Prime Minister of India |
| Bharat Ratna 1975 | V. V. Giri | Trade Unionist |
| Bharat Ratna 1976 | K. Kamaraj | Independence activist and statesman, former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu |
| Bharat Ratna 1980 | Mother Teresa | Catholic nun and the founder of the Missionaries of Charity. |
| 1983 | Vinoba Bhave | Activist, social reformer, and a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi |
| Bharat Ratna 1987 | Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan | First noncitizen, independence activist |
| Bharat Ratna 1988 | M. G. Ramachandran | Actor turned politician, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu |
| Bharat Ratna 1990 | B.R. Ambedkar | Social reformer and leader of the Dalits |
| Nelson Mandela | Leader of the Anti-Apartheid Movement in South Africa, President of South Africa | |
| Bharat Ratna 1991 | Rajiv Gandhi | Gandhi was the ninth Prime Minister of India serving from 1984 to 1989. |
| Vallabhbhai Patel | Activist and first Deputy Prime Minister of India | |
| Morarji Desai | Activist, and Prime Minister of India | |
| Bharat Ratna 1992 | Abul Kalam Azad | Activist and first Minister of education |
| J. R. D. Tata | Industrialist, philanthropist, and aviation pioneer | |
| Satyajit Ray | Director, filmmaker, writer, novelist | |
| Bharat Ratna 1997 | Gulzarilal Nanda | Activist, and interim Prime Minister of India. |
| Aruna Asaf Ali | Activist | |
| A.P.J Abdul Kalam | Aerospace and defense scientist | |
| Bharat Ratna 1998 | M. S. Subbulakshmi | Carnatic classical vocalist |
| Chidambaram Subramaniam | Activist and former Minister of Agriculture of India | |
| Bharat Ratna 1999 | Jayaprakash Narayan | Activist, and social reformer |
| Amartya Sen | Economist | |
| Gopinath Bordoloi | Activist | |
| Ravi Shankar | Musician, sitar player | |
| Bharat Ratna 2001 | Lata Mangeshkar | Singer |
| Bismillah Khan | Hindustani classical shehnai player | |
| Bharat Ratna 2009 | Bhimsen Joshi | Hindustani classical vocalist |
| Bharat Ratna 2014 | C. N. R. Rao | Chemist and professor, author |
| Sachin Tendulkar | Cricketer | |
| Bharat Ratna 2015 | Madan Mohan Malaviya | Scholar and educational reformer. |
| Atal Bihari Bajpayee | Elected nine times to the Lok Sabha, twice to the Rajya Sabha, and served as the Prime Minister of India for three terms. | |
| Bharat Ratna 2019 | Pranab Mukherjee | Indian politician, and senior leader in the Indian National Congress. |
| Nanaji Deshmukh | A social activist from India, education, health, and rural self-reliance. | |
| Bhupen Hazarika | Indian playback singer, lyricist, musician, singer, poet, and filmmaker from Assam. |
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