Yesterday the longest-serving Prime Minister of
Japan Shinzo Abe was shot while addressing a campaign in the city of Nara,
later he succumbed to his wounds at the hospital. This news from a country like
Japan has shocked the entire world and has brought again the question of the safety
of the global leaders into the light.
There have been such incidents from
across the globe in the past as well, which has left the world numb. These killings
have been recorded in pages of history which include leaders from India as
well, a brief look into the past.
John F. Kennedy, 35th
President of the United States:
The
American president is still remembered for some of his great works. 43 years
old, Kennedy still holds the position of being the second-youngest president of
the United States. Kennedy was shot dead in 1963 while he was travelling in an
open car in Dallas city of Texas. He was killed by a former Marine, Lee Harvey
Oswald. Oswald was arrested by police, however, he was killed by one of Kennedy’s
supporters two days later. This incident sends shock waves to the entire world.
Mother India, Indira Gandhi:
The
former Prime Minister of India was brutally murdered by her two Sikh
bodyguards, Beant Singh and Satwant Singh on October 31st, 1984. They
murdered Indira in response to the military ‘Operation Blue Star’ on the Sikh
holy Golden Temple that was ordered by her during her prime ministership. There
was another man named Kehar Singh in the entire episode of killing Indira, he didn’t
fire a bullet but was found guilty of conspiring to do Indira’s murder. Beant
Singh was shot on the spot after killing Indira by other bodyguards. Hundreds
of people were killed in the military operation against Khalistani Militants at
the Golden Temple.
Rajiv Gandhi
India’s
Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was killed on May 21st, 1991 in a
suicidal attack. During his term in the office, he sent a peace force into Sri
Lanka. Due to this the Tamil rebel force LTTE, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam,
was outraged by the step. In 1991 while campaigning for Lok Sabha elections in
a place Sriperumbudur close to Chennai, LTTE was fully prepared and Gandhi was
killed in their suicidal attack. The LTTE militant, a woman named Thenmozi Rajaratnam
came close to Gandhi and pressed the button of the explosive tied around her
waist. The blast was so powerful that rags of people around Gandhi flew away
for meters. The attack claimed the lives of 14 people, whereas 45 others were grievously
injured.
Abraham Lincoln
In the year 1865, the 16th President
of the United States was killed. At the time of the attack he was watching a
play titled, Our American Cousin’ in the Ford Theatre of Washington. At the
time this incident took place his bodyguard John Parker was not with him. The killer
who shot Lincoln was a professional drama artist, at around quarter past 10
that night John Wikes shot at Lincoln’s head from a close range. He was rushed to
the hospital, where he died the next morning, April 15th. 10 days
later the American forces gunned Wikes down in an encounter.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Mujibur
Rahman was the first President of Bangladesh, which was separated from
erstwhile undivided Pakistan. He liberated Bangladesh by leading the war from the
front. He was famous by the name of Sheikh Mujib. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and
some of his family members were killed on August 15th, 1975.
Liaquat Ali Khan
Born in Karnal in present-day Haryana, Former
Prime Minister of Pakistan, Liaquat Ali Khan was killed on October 16th,
1951 in Rawalpindi. He was addressing a conference in the Company Garden. The man
who shot Khan was Syyed Akhbar Khan Babrakazai, he fired his bullet from the
spot which was reserved for Intelligence Officers. The incident remains a
mystery of how he reached that spot and so remains his murder.
Benazir Bhutto
The
first female Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto was killed on the
evening of December 27th, 2007. She was the first-ever woman to lead
any Islamic country. She was killed in a rally in Rawalpindi. The man who
killed Bhutto later killed himself. Besides Bhutto 20 of her party worker were
killed and more than 71 others were badly injured. The incident of Bhutto’s
death is still pending at the Lahore High Court. The question of who laid down
the conspiracy behind Bhutto’s murder remained unanswered.
Ranasinghe Premadasa
Ranasinghe
was the third President of Sri Lanka. On the occasion of May Day in 1993, he
was killed in a suicidal attack in Colombo by an LTTE militant. After Ranasinghe’s
murder Sri Lankan forces went into a straight war against LTTE, which went on
for 26 years that claimed 70 thousand lives.
Mahatma
Gandhi
The day January 30, 1948, started as usual for
Gandhi, with daily prayers. In the prayer hall of Birla House, Gandhi reached a
bit late that day, when he reached that day he attended the crowd with folded hands.
Then only from the left side, Nathuram Godse bent over in front of him took out
his pistol and shot three bullets one after another. Gandhi’s last words were, ‘He
Ram’ before falling on the floor. He was bleeding badly and was rushed to
hospital but soon after he was declared dead by the doctors.
Martin
Luther King Junior
In 1968 American revolutionary Martin Luther King
Junior was shot dead. He played a crucial role in the rights of the Afro-American
community. King in the year 1963 delivered a speech ‘I have a dream which became
too famous and later was patronized as the symbol of revolution for rights.
It is recorded as one of the most influential and remembered speeches in history.
The Royal Family of Nepal
On
June 1st, 2001, the crown prince of Nepal Dipendra Shah killed 9
members of his family. Among the dead were his father, King Birendra, Mother
Queen Aishwarya, and the other 7 people of the royal family. After killing members
of the family Dipendra killed him as well. Contention over his marriage and
rift with the family member in that regard made Dipendra kill his family
members.
Francis Ferdinand
On
July 28th, 1914 First World War started. Austrian Prince
Ferdinand was killed in Serbia. Outraged by this Austria launched an attack on
Serbia with Hungary. This was the cause behind World War 1, which gradually
brought small countries into it. However, this was one of the reasons behind
World War 1, the policies and alliances in different forms were other reasons
behind the war.