Jawaharlal Nehru being sworn in as India's first prime minister on August 15, 1947. On August 15, 1947 as India attained Independence, Jawaharlal Nehru was sworn in as the first prime minister of the free nation. His oath of office was administered by Lord Louis Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India. Nehru, considered the architect of modern India, served as prime minister till his death 50 years ago on May 27, 1964, spearheading the Congress party's victory in the first three Lok Sabha elections of 1952, 1957 and 1962. His 16 years and 286 days-long term in office makes him the longest-serving prime minister till date. Lal Bahadur Shastri celebrates his own and Mahatma Gandhi's birthday, October 2, by spinning the charkha at the Gandhi samadhi in New Delhi. T he huge void created after Nehru's death was filled when Lal Bahadur Shastri -- the diminutive politician from Uttar Pradesh who held portfolios like home and railways in Nehru's ...