Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru was born on the 14th of November 1889 in Allahabad, British India. He grew up in the Anand Bhavan mansion with his mother Swarup Rani and father Motilal Nehru. His family belonged to the Kashmiri Pandit community of Brahmins. Motilal Nehru served as president of the Indian National Congress in 1919 and 1928. The younger Nehru attended Harrow School in England where he received the nickname Joe. He later studied at Trinity College Cambridge and graduated with an honours degree in natural science in 1910. After completing his studies he moved to London to study law at the Inner Temple. He was called to the Bar in 1912. Upon returning to India in August 1912 he enrolled at the Allahabad High Court. His father earned a monthly income exceeding Rs. 10,000 which made him one of the wealthiest barristers in British India. Nehru had little interest in legal practice or the company of lawyers. He gradually allowed nationalist politics to replace his career as a barrister.
Nehru's first imprisonment began on the 6th of December 1921 for anti-governmental activities. This marked the start of eight periods of detention between 1921 and 1945 lasting over nine years total. In 1930 he was arrested while on a train from Allahabad to Raipur during the Salt March protest. He was sentenced to six months of imprisonment at Central Jail. On the 11th of October 1930 his detention ended but he returned to jail less than ten days later. The government considered him by far the most dangerous element at large in India. A memo from the Home Secretary dated the 22nd of December 1933 ordered action against him to prevent mass agitation. He was arrested again in Allahabad on the 12th of January 1934. During World War II the entire Congress working committee including Nehru was imprisoned at Ahmednagar Fort until the 15th of June 1945. While incarcerated he wrote The Discovery of India. His time in prison fundamentally altered his political philosophy and solidified his role as a leader of the independence movement.
On the 15th of August 1947 Nehru became the prime minister of independent India. He delivered an inaugural address titled Tryst with Destiny at midnight. The speech declared that long ago they made a tryst with destiny which would now be redeemed. At the stroke of the midnight hour India would awake to life and freedom. Between 1947 and about 1950 the territories of princely states were politically integrated into the Indian Union under Nehru and Sardar Patel. Most states merged into existing provinces while others formed new provinces like Rajputana and Himachal Pradesh. In May 1947 Nehru declared any princely state refusing to join the Constituent Assembly would be treated as an enemy state. The new Constitution came into force on the 26th of January 1950 making India a sovereign democratic republic. The preamble to the constitution turned from Nehru's Objectives Resolution moved in December 1946. In 1963 Nehru introduced legislation making it illegal to demand secession through the Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution.
Throughout his tenure as prime minister Nehru held the portfolio of External Affairs. He pioneered the policy of non-alignment co-founding the Non-Aligned Movement of nations professing neutrality. The term non-alignment was coined by V. K. Krishna Menon at the United Nations in 1953 and 1954. Nehru was a key organiser of the Bandung Conference of April 1955 bringing together 29 newly independent nations from Asia and Africa. He envisioned it as his key leadership opportunity on the world stage. In 1954 he signed with China the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence known in India as Panchsheel. This agreement recognised Chinese sovereignty over Tibet. Nehru argued for China's inclusion in the United Nations refusing to brand them aggressors during the Korean War conflict. He sought to establish warm relations with China hoping to act as an intermediary between communist states and the Western bloc. His idealistic approach focused on giving India a leadership position among newly independent nations opposing military alliances.
From 1959 Nehru adopted the Forward Policy setting up military outposts in disputed areas of the Sino-Indian border including 43 outposts. China attacked some of these outposts beginning the Sino-Indian War which India lost. The war ended with China announcing a unilateral ceasefire withdrawing forces 20 kilometres behind the line of actual control of 1959. The unpreparedness of India's military exposed itself sending only 14,000 troops against the much larger Chinese Army. Defence minister V. K. Krishna Menon resigned allowing for further modernisation efforts. Nehru sought US military aid under John F. Kennedy proving useful during the war. Pakistan's president Ayub Khan was made to guarantee neutrality regarding India threatened by communist aggression from Red China. Nehru ordered the raising of an elite Indian-trained Tibetan Armed Force composed of Tibetan refugees. This force served with distinction in future wars against Pakistan in 1965 and 1971. He laid the foundation stone of the National Defence Academy in 1949 stating that they must be prepared with all modern defence methods.
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Common questions
When and where was Jawaharlal Nehru born?
Jawaharlal Nehru was born on the 14th of November 1889 in Allahabad, British India. He grew up in the Anand Bhavan mansion with his mother Swarup Rani and father Motilal Nehru.
What were the key dates of Jawaharlal Nehru's imprisonment periods?
Nehru's first imprisonment began on the 6th of December 1921 for anti-governmental activities. His detention lasted over nine years total across eight periods between 1921 and 1945, including incarceration at Ahmednagar Fort until the 15th of June 1945.
How did Jawaharlal Nehru become prime minister of independent India?
On the 15th of August 1947 Nehru became the prime minister of independent India after delivering an inaugural address titled Tryst with Destiny at midnight. The new Constitution came into force on the 26th of January 1950 making India a sovereign democratic republic under his leadership.
Which economic policies did Jawaharlal Nehru implement during his tenure as prime minister?
Jawaharlal Nehru implemented policies based on import substitution industrialisation advocating a mixed economy. Steel mill complexes were built at Bokaro and Rourkela with assistance from the Soviet Union and West Germany while industry grew 7.0% annually between 1950 and 1965.
What foreign policy initiatives did Jawaharlal Nehru pioneer regarding international relations?
Nehru pioneered the policy of non-alignment co-founding the Non-Aligned Movement of nations professing neutrality. He was a key organiser of the Bandung Conference of April 1955 bringing together 29 newly independent nations from Asia and Africa.