Jump to content

Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Her Excellency
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
Pandit in 1938
8th President of the United Nations General Assembly
In office
15 September 1953 – 21 September 1954[1]
Preceded byLester B. Pearson
Succeeded byEelco N. van Kleffens
3rdGovernor of Maharashtra
In office
28 November 1962 – 18 October 1964
Chief MinisterMarotrao Kannamwar
P. K. Sawant(acting)
Vasantrao Naik
Preceded byP. Subbarayan
Succeeded byP. V. Cherian
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
In office
1964–1969
Preceded byJawaharlal Nehru
Succeeded byJaneshwar Mishra
ConstituencyPhulpur
Personal details
Born
Swarup Nehru

(1900-08-18)18 August 1900
Allahabad,North West Provinces,British India
(present dayPrayagraj,Uttar Pradesh,India)
Died1 December 1990(1990-12-01)(aged 90)
Dehradun,Uttar Pradesh,India
(present-dayUttarakhand)
Political partyIndian National Congress
Spouse
​
​
(m.1921; died 1944)​
Children3, includingNayantara Sahgal
Parent(s)Pandit Motilal Nehru
Swarup Rani Nehru
RelativesSeeNehru–Gandhi family
Signature

Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit(néeSwarupNehru;[2]18 August 1900 – 1 December 1990) was an Indian freedom fighter, diplomat and politician. She served as the 8thPresident of the United Nations General Assemblyfrom 1953 to 1954, the first woman appointed to this post. She was also the 3rdGovernor of Maharashtrafrom 1962 to 1964. Noted for her participation in theIndian independence movement,she was jailed several times during the movement.

Hailing from the prominentNehru-Gandhipolitical family, her brotherJawaharlal Nehruwas the firstPrime Ministerofindependent India,her nieceIndira Gandhiwas the first female Prime Minister of India and her grand-nephewRajiv Gandhiwas the sixth and youngest Prime Minister of India. She was sent to London as India's most important diplomat after serving as India's envoy to theSoviet Union,theUnited Statesand theUnited Nations.Her time in London offers insights into the wider context of changes inIndia–UK relations.[3]

Early life

[edit]

Vijaya Lakshmi's (born Swarup)[2]father,Motilal Nehru(1861–1931), a wealthy barrister who belonged to theKashmiri Panditcommunity,[4]served twice asPresident of the Indian National Congressduring theIndependence Struggle.Her mother,Swaruprani Thussu(1868–1938), who came from a well-known Kashmiri Pandit family settled inLahore,[5]was Motilal's second wife, the first having died in child birth. She was the second of three children;Jawaharlalwas eleven years her senior (b. 1889), while her younger sisterKrishna Hutheesing(b. 1907–1967) became a noted writer and authored several books on their brother.

Career

[edit]
Pandit in theNetherlands,1965
Pandit as a Chief Guest atThe Doon School,Dehradun, in the 1960s.

She attended the 1916 Congress session that took place in Lucknow. She was impressed bySarojini NaiduandAnnie Besant.[6]

In 1920, she spent time inMahatma Gandhi'sashramclose toAhmedabad.She participated in daily chores including dairy work and spinning. She also worked in the office that used to publishYoung India.[6]

Pandit was the first Indian woman to hold a cabinet post in pre-independent India. In 1936, she stood in general elections and became a member of parliament by 1937 for the constituency of Cawnpore Bilhaur.[7]In 1937, she was elected to the provincial legislature of theUnited Provincesand was designated minister of local self-government and public health.[8][9]She held the latter post until 1938 and again from 1946 to 1947.[10][11]

She spent significant time in jail for her participation in the Indian independence movement. She was jailed for 18 months from 1931 - 1933. She was jailed again for 6 months in 1940 before getting jailed in 1942 for 7 months over her participation in theQuit India Movement.[12][7]After her release, she helped the victims of theBengal famine of 1943and served as president of theSave the Children Fund Committeewhich rescued poor children from the streets.[7]

Following the death of her husband in 1944, she experienced Indian inheritance laws for Hindu widows and campaigned withAll India Women's Conferenceto bring changes to these laws.[7]

In 1946, she was elected to theConstituent Assemblyfrom the United Provinces.[13]

Following India's independence from British rule in 1947 she entered the diplomatic service and becameIndia's ambassador to the Soviet Unionfrom 1947 to 1949,[14][15]the United States and Mexico from 1949 to 1951,[16][17]Ireland from 1955 to 1961 (during which time she was also the IndianHigh Commissionerto the United Kingdom),[18]and Spain from 1956 to 1961.[19]Between 1946 and 1968, she headed the Indian delegation to the United Nations. In 1953, she became the first womanPresident of the United Nations General Assembly[20](she was inducted as an honorary member of theAlpha Kappa Alphasorority in 1978 for this accomplishment[21]). That same year she was a candidate forSecretary General of the United Nations.[22]

Hon. Members Shrimati Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit has resigned her seat in the House with effect from 17 December 1954.[23]

In India, she served asGovernor of Maharashtrafrom 1962 to 1964. She returned as a member of parliament for 1964 to 1968 with her election victory inPhulpur.[7][24]Pandit was a harsh critic ofIndira Gandhi's years as prime minister especially after Indira had declared theemergencyin 1975.[7]

Pandit retired from active politics after relations between them soured. On retiring, she moved toDehradunin theDoon Valleyin the Himalayan foothills.[25]She came out of retirement in 1977 to campaign against Indira Gandhi and helped theJanata Partywin the 1977 election.[26]She was reported to have considered running for the presidency, butNeelam Sanjiva Reddyeventually ran and won the election unopposed.[27]

In 1979, she was appointed the Indian representative to theUN Human Rights Commission,after which she retired from public life. Her writings includeThe Evolution of India(1958) andThe Scope of Happiness: A Personal Memoir(1979).

Personal life

[edit]

In 1921, she marriedRanjit Sitaram Pandit(1921–1944), a successful barrister fromKathiawar,Gujaratand classical scholar who translatedKalhana's epic historyRajataranginiinto English fromSanskrit.Her husband was a Maharashtrian Saraswat Brahmin, whose family hailed from village of Bambuli, on the Ratnagiri coast, in Maharashtra. He was arrested for his support of Indian independence and died in Lucknow prison in 1944, leaving behind his wife and their three daughters Chandralekha Mehta, Nayantara Sehgal and Rita Dar.

She died in 1990. She was survived by her daughters, Chandralekha andNayantara Sahgal.

Academics

[edit]
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit along with Indira Gandhi and Nehru visit Albert Einstein

She was the member ofAligarh Muslim UniversityExecutive Council.[28]

She was an Honorary Fellow ofSomerville College, Oxford,where her niece studied Modern History.[29]A portrait of her byEdward Hallidayhangs in theSomerville College Library.[30]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^"Presidents of the General Assembly | United Nations".Wayback Machine.Archived fromthe originalon 11 October 2012.Retrieved22 March2012.
  2. ^abNehru, Krishna (1945).With No Regrets: An Autobiography.New York:The John Day Company.
  3. ^Rakesh Ankit, "Between Vanity and Sensitiveness: Indo–British Relations During Vijayalakshmi Pandit’s High-Commissioner (1954–61)."Contemporary British History30.1 (2016): 20–39.
  4. ^Moraes 2008,p. 4.
  5. ^Zakaria, RafiqA Study of Nehru,Times of India Press, 1960, p. 22
  6. ^abSmith, B.G. (2008).The Oxford Encyclopedia of Women in World History.Oxford University Press. p. 2-PA406.ISBN978-0-19-514890-9.
  7. ^abcdefRappaport, Helen (2001).Encyclopedia of Women Social Reformers.ABC-CLIO. p. 507.ISBN978-1-57607-101-4.
  8. ^Pandit, Vijaya Lakshmi (1939)."First Person, Singular".So I became a Minister.Allahabad: Kitabistan. pp. 141–143.Retrieved11 September2022.
  9. ^Welcome address from Chairman of Municipal Board, Agra, to Smt. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit honouring her as Minister of Local Self Government and Health, and highlighting the poor civic conditions of Agra(in Hindi). Allahabad: Sainik Press. 1938.Retrieved12 September2022– viaAllahabad Museum.
  10. ^Khan, Abdul Majid (1946)."Lakshmi Resigns".The Great Daughter of India.Lahore: Indian Printing Works. p. 152.Retrieved12 September2022.
  11. ^Pandit, Vijaya Lakshmi (1979)."Interim Government".The Scope of Happiness: A Personal Memoir.New York: Crown Publishers Inc. pp. 200–201, 203, 204–205.ISBN0-517-53688-9.Retrieved12 September2022.
  12. ^Bhagavan, M. (2013).India and the Quest for One World: The Peacemakers.Palgrave Macmillan Transnational History Series. Palgrave Macmillan UK. p. 14.ISBN978-1-137-34983-5.
  13. ^Pandit, Vijaya Lakshmi (1979). "Interim Government".The Scope of Happiness: A Personal Memoir.New York: Crown Publishers Inc. pp. 225.ISBN0-517-53688-9.Retrieved 12 September 2022.
  14. ^"India's Ambassador to Moscow: Mrs. V. L. Pandit's choice certain".The Indian Express.Vol. 15, no. 83. Madras. 7 June 1947. p. 1.Retrieved11 September2022.
  15. ^Appointment of Mrs. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit as Ambassador for India in USSR and fixation of her pay and allowance.New Delhi: Department of External Affairs and Commonwealth Relations: External Affairs Wing. 1947. p. 11.Retrieved11 September2022– viaNational Archives of India.
  16. ^"Woman Ambassador".The Pittsburgh Press.Vol. 65, no. 316. 8 May 1949. p. 33.Retrieved11 September2022.
  17. ^Appointment of Shrimati Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit as Ambassador in U.S.A. succession to Shri B.Rama Rau I.C.S. and fixation of her pay and allowances. Grant of Joining time to H.E., Shrimati Vijaya Lakshmi Ambassador of India in USA. Grant of free air passage to Shrimati Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit and her daughter....New Delhi: Press Information Bureau. 1949. p. 33.Retrieved11 September2022– viaNational Archives of India.
  18. ^O'Malley, Kate (2011)."Ireland and India: Post-independence Diplomacy".Irish Studies in International Affairs.22.Royal Irish Academy: 152–153.doi:10.1353/isia.2011.0004.JSTOR41413198.Retrieved12 September2022– via JSTOR.
  19. ^Brittain, Vera(1965)."The Conquest of Britain".Envoy Extraordinary: A Study of Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit and her contribution to Modern India.London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd. p. 135.Retrieved12 September2022.Spain and India had decided in May 1956 to establish diplomatic relations at Embassy level, and now made her the first woman, and probably the first diplomat, to hold three ambassadorships simultaneously. She visited Madrid to present her credentials on October 30, 1957, and was officially photographed with General Franco.
  20. ^Oxford Dictionaries, online."Vijay Lakshmi Pandit".Archived fromthe originalon 26 October 2011.Retrieved2 July2012.
  21. ^"Alpha Kappa Alpha 1978".Archived fromthe originalon 26 December 2014.Retrieved14 December2014.
  22. ^Goodwin, Ralph R., ed. (1979).United Nations Affairs.Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954. Vol. 3.Washington D.C.:United States Government Printing Office.p. Document 209.
  23. ^Lok Sabha Debates Vol VII, 1954(PDF).Lok Sabha Secretariat New Delhi. 18 December 1954. p. 12.
  24. ^Malaviya, Padma Kant.P.K. Malaviya analyses election defeat and congratulates Mrs. Vijay Lakshmi on her victory in Phulpur Lok Sabha election.New Delhi. p. 1.Retrieved12 September2022– viaNational Archives of India.
  25. ^Indira Gandhi's Aunt Says She Is 'Profoundly Troubled' at Direction India Is Taking,NY Times, 31 October 1976
  26. ^Sister Burnishes Nehru's Image, Lest India Forget,NY Times, 22 May 1989
  27. ^Nehru's Sister Campaigning for Presidency of India,NY Times,
  28. ^Batori (10 December 2015)."Nayantara Sahgal delivers 6th K P Singh Memorial Lecture".Batori.Batori.in. Archived fromthe originalon 11 December 2015.Retrieved10 December2015.
  29. ^Visit of Shrimati Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit former Governor of Maharashtra to London to receive the Honorary Degree of of D.C.L. from the Oxford University - Payment of air fare from Bombay to London & back.New Delhi: Ministry of External Affairs. 1965. pp. 1–21.Retrieved11 September2022– viaNational Archives of India.
  30. ^"Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit".Equality and Diversity Unit, University of Oxford.11 September 2022.

Further reading

[edit]
  • Ankit, Rakesh. "Between Vanity and Sensitiveness:Indo–British Relations During Vijayalakshmi Pandit's High-Commissionership (1954–61) ".Contemporary British History30:1 (2016): 20–39.doi:10.1080/13619462.2015.1049262.
  • Gupta, Indra (2004).India's 50 Most Illustrious Women.New Delhi: Icon Publications.ISBN81-88086-19-3.OCLC858639936.
  • Menon, Parvathi (2023). "Vijayalakshmi Pandit: Gendering and Racing against the Postcolonial Predicament" in Immi Tallgren (ed.)Portraits of Women in International Law(Oxford University Press, 2023).
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related toVijaya Lakshmi Pandit.
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Indian Ambassador to the United States
1949–1952 		Succeeded by
Preceded by President of the United Nations General Assembly
1953 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
none
 Ambassador of India to the Soviet Union
1947–1949 		Succeeded by
Preceded by High Commission of India to the United Kingdom
1954–1961 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Governor of Maharashtra
1962–1964 		Succeeded by
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vijaya_Lakshmi_Pandit&oldid=1233145953"