Archive · 20 Aug 2026
PM Modi Pays Tribute to Rajiv Gandhi on Birth Anniversary
Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembered former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on his birthday.
Rajiv Gandhi was born on August 20, 1944, in Bombay, which is now called Mumbai.
Members of the Congress party, including his son Rahul, daughter Priyanka and wife Sonia, also honored him.
Rajiv first worked as a pilot before entering politics.
He joined politics after his brother Sanjay Gandhi died in a plane crash.
After his mother, Indira Gandhi, was assassinated in 1984, Rajiv became Prime Minister.
His Congress party won 401 seats in the election that followed.
He later became the Leader of the Opposition after Congress lost the 1989 election.
He died in a bomb blast in Tamil Nadu in 1991.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid homage to Rajiv Gandhi on August 20, 2026.
Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and other Congress leaders also paid tribute at Veer Bhumi.
Rajiv Gandhi was born in Bombay, now Mumbai, on August 20, 1944.
He became Prime Minister after Indira Gandhi’s assassination and led Congress to 401 of 508 Lok Sabha seats in 1984.
Rajiv Gandhi later became Leader of the Opposition and died in a 1991 bomb blast at Sriperumbudur.
- Who
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leaders and Rajiv Gandhi’s family paid tribute to Rajiv Gandhi.
- What
- They commemorated Rajiv Gandhi on his birth anniversary.
- When
- Thursday, August 20, 2026; Rajiv Gandhi was born on August 20, 1944.
- Where
- Modi posted his tribute on X, while Congress leaders paid homage at Veer Bhumi in New Delhi.
- Why
- The tributes marked Rajiv Gandhi’s birth anniversary.
- Birth
- August 20, 1944, in Bombay, now Mumbai
- Tribute date
- August 20, 2026, on his 82nd birth anniversary
- Prime ministerial rise
- He became Prime Minister after the assassination of Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984.
- 1984 election result
- Congress won 401 of 508 Lok Sabha seats.
- Earlier career
- Rajiv Gandhi worked as a commercial pilot with Indian Airlines.
- Later political role
- He became Leader of the Opposition after Congress lost the 1989 general election.
- Death
- He died in a bomb blast on May 21, 1991, at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu.
- Age as Prime Minister
- The reports differ, describing his age as either 40 or 41 when he took office.
