Freedom
fighter, India's first prime minister, noble statesman, social reformer
and erudite scholar - throughout his life Jawaharlal Nehru donned many
hats and all with poise and equanimity. His immense contribution to the
freedom movement notwithstanding, Jawaharlal Nehru's appropriate place
in Indian history would be that of the architect of free India. Entrusted with the responsibility of leading the free nation and delivering on the promise made to the millions of countrymen, Jawaharlal Nehru played a definitive role in laying the basic building blocks of a socialist democratic nation. Apart from launching a range of initiatives to facilitate development in all sectors, Nehru enriched the soul of the nation with the tenets of secularism, social justice and non-alignment.
While Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was a beloved leader of the masses in the freedom struggle, his tenure as India's prime minister was marked by many controversies. He was accused of nepotism consequent to the election of daughter Indira as the Congress president in 1959. Many alleged that Nehru's pacifist policies caused Indian Army's humiliating defeat in the 1962 Chinese invasion. Jawaharlal has been dubbed by many historians as an aristocrat who never connected with the masses the way other leaders did.
