One Life is Not Enough

by K. Natwar Singh

In March 1967, the Svetlana incident caused a slight dent in Indo-USSR relations. Svetlana was the daughter of Joseph Stalin. She fell in love with Brajesh Singh, a committed communist who had lived in Moscow for many years. Brajesh Singh then fell seriously ill and doctors recommended a shift to a warmer climate. He was not permitted to return to India. So Brajesh Singh stayed in Moscow, where he died. Svetlana, however, was permitted to come to India to immerse Singh’s ashes in the Ganga River. On 23 March 1967, the American Ambassador Chester Bowles brought a memo for Indira Gandhi, which Svetlana had given to a member of the American Embassy on 6 March. He requested the Prime Minister to look at it. Indira Gandhi told the American Ambassador that the Soviets were putting the blame on India for allowing Svetlana to leave India. On 7 March, Svetlana had lunched with the Russian Ambassador and asked if she could remain in India. Her request had been promptly rejected. The Ambassador had handed back her passport and an air ticket to Moscow and had asked Svetlana to leave the next day. Svetlana then got into a taxi and drove to the US Embassy to seek asylum. She was persuaded to take a flight to New York. The Soviets were furious and our Ambassador in Moscow was given a dressing down by Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko.