50 years of
existence as an independent nation has produced
convictions, attitudes and fears which are real, tangible
and, more important, identifiable. An exhaustive India
Today-ORG-Marg Independence poll sought to track and
interpret some of these.
N A T I O
N A L||L E A D E R
MAHATMA Gandhi may be the official father of
the nation, but Indians seem to have anointed
Indira Gandhi as the Bharat Mata. Her 13 years in
power were contentious. Yet, in unprompted
answers, more Indians chose her as the person
they have been most inspired by. Even more
surprising was the fact that BJP leader A.B.
Vajpayee -- a prime minister for 13 days --
ranked above Jawaharlal Nehru, prime minister for
17 years, and his grandson Rajiv Gandhi. Other
leaders of today don't even get a look in.
Which national leader
from the past or present has inspired you?
INDIRA
GANDHI
18
MAHATMA GANDHI
14
A B VAJPAYEE
9
RAJIV GANDHI
7
PANDIT NEHRU
7
LAL BAHADUR
SHASTRI
4
S C BOSE
4
MAYAWATI
2
V P SINGH
1
MGR
1
Rest: Others
All figures in percentage
The graphs are only representative, not to scale
50 years of
existence as an independent nation has produced
convictions, attitudes and fears which are real, tangible
and, more important, identifiable. An exhaustive India
Today-ORG-Marg Independence poll sought to track and
interpret some of these. 
