Vivid Account of Indira Gandhi’s Final Hours at AIIMS by Dr. Sneh Bhargava

New Delhi, 1984 — It was supposed to be a milestone day for Dr. Sneh Bhargava, her very first as the Director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and also the first woman ever to hold the post. But before she could fully assume the responsibilities of her new office, history intervened in the most violent and unexpected way.

She was in her department teaching medical students when a radiographer burst in with urgency and disbelief: “Madam, the Prime Minister has come in casualty.”

Dr. Bhargava couldn’t believe it. Protocol dictated that any such VIP movement be preceded by a security notification. But something was clearly wrong. She rushed to the emergency unit, just steps away from her department.

“The doctors on duty were frozen in panic. I asked, ‘Where is the Prime Minister?’ They pointed to a blood-soaked body on a trolley without a sheet. I could only recognize her from her white-streaked hair.”

Indira Gandhi had been gunned down by her own bodyguards. Her body, according to Dr. Bhargava, was riddled with bullets, especially on the right side of her chest and across her abdomen and liver. There were so many bullet wounds that no one could keep count. Blood was everywhere—on the trolley, the floor, and still oozing from her neck, chest, and stomach.

Despite the apparent hopelessness, AIIMS staff attempted to resuscitate her. Senior surgeons were summoned within minutes. “There was no pulse, but someone suggested trying the heart-lung machine,” Dr. Bhargava recalled. “I said, ‘What’s there to think about? Do it quickly.’”

The team rushed her to the operation theatre on the eighth floor. Not just for emergency care, but also to protect her body from the inevitable onrush of political leaders and press.

Indira Gandhi had B-negative blood, a rare type. The AIIMS blood bank had only two units, which were quickly exhausted. The medical superintendent frantically arranged for O-negative, the universal donor type, from other hospitals across Delhi.

Meanwhile, panic and politics were beginning to swirl around AIIMS.

“Sonia Gandhi came with her. She could only say, ‘She has been shot.’ She then suffered an asthmatic attack. We gave her medication and made her rest outside the theatre,” said Dr. Bhargava, who then took personal charge of Sonia’s well-being.

AIIMS was transforming into the epicenter of political transition. The 7th floor was cleared to accommodate the influx of ministers and dignitaries. Among them was Health Minister Shankaran Nand, who immediately began political consultations. “They were already discussing who the next Prime Minister would be,” said Dr. Sneh Bhargava. “We gave them a room so they could make their decisions in private.”

By then, a consensus had formed. Rajiv Gandhi, who was on an election tour, would be the next Prime Minister. No official announcement was made for four hours, until he returned to Delhi. “We kept the surgeons stationed inside the operation theatre, just to maintain the appearance of ongoing treatment. We were told no announcement should be made until Rajiv returns.”

In an interview with BBC Hindi, Dr. Bhargava revisited these hours as the most surreal of her medical career. While discussing her forthcoming book The Woman Who Ran AIIMS, she reflected on how the hospital had to continue the pretence of saving Indira Gandhi despite knowing she had been brought in dead. It was, in her words, a tragic yet defining moment that tested the limits of personal resolve and institutional protocol.

When Rajiv arrived, he greeted Sonia and briefly saw the children, Rahul and Priyanka, still very young then. The children were quickly sent to Teji Bachchan’s home for safety.

Dr. Bhargava also recalled the silent arrival of President Giani Zail Singh, himself a Sikh, visibly shaken. “He was deeply disturbed. Mrs. Gandhi had made him President, and now he was facing the reality that two Sikh bodyguards had assassinated her.”

In the emotionally charged atmosphere, the safety of Sikh staff at AIIMS became a major concern.

“One technician ran away from the operation theatre in fear. I gathered my Sikh faculty members and told them—if you don’t feel safe, come stay at my house. Meanwhile, I called the IG Police and had a police contingent stationed on campus. We needed to secure the institute.”

Despite the chaos, Dr. Bhargava’s priority remained twofold: preserving the dignity of the Prime Minister’s body and ensuring every shred of medical and forensic evidence was properly documented for the inevitable inquiry.

“There was tremendous pressure,” she said. “But we couldn’t afford to miss any detail. The world was watching.”

Legacy of a Moment

What began as the first day in a prestigious leadership role for Dr. Sneh Bhargava became one of the most defining and tragic moments in India’s modern history. Her calm under pressure, medical leadership, and quiet management of chaos ensured that AIIMS held together during a time when the country itself was reeling.

Years later, Dr. Bhargava would document these events in her memoir— to underline the human dimensions of institutions, politics, and trauma.

“This wasn’t just a political assassination. It was a test of our systems, our values, and our resilience.”

That October day in 1984 remains etched in India's collective memory, and in the life story of one woman who, in the most unimaginable circumstances, stood at the center of it all.