Lost For Years, Feroze Gandhi’s Driving Licence Finds Its Way Back To Gandhi Family

Last Updated:January 21, 2026, 12:22 IST

The driving licence was presented to Rahul Gandhi on stage during the inauguration of the Rae Bareli Premier League cricket tournament.

Feroze Gandhi's driving licence. (Image: News18)

An emotionally charged moment unfolded during Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Rae Bareli when he was handed a long lost driving licence belonging to his grandfather, Feroze Gandhi, the former Member of Parliament from the constituency. The rare decades-old document, long considered lost, had been carefully preserved by a local family for years and was finally returned to the Gandhi family during a public event on Tuesday.

The driving licence was presented to Rahul Gandhi on stage during the inauguration of the Raebareli Premier League cricket tournament. As soon as he received the document, Rahul Gandhi examined it closely, visibly moved by the unexpected connection to his family’s past. He immediately clicked photographs of the licence on his mobile phone and shared them via WhatsApp with his mother, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and his sister, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

The licence had been safeguarded for decades by the family of Vikas Singh, a member of the tournament’s organising committee. Singh explained that the document had come into his family’s possession many years ago during a programme held in Raebareli, where his father-in-law had received it under circumstances that were never fully clarified. Recognising its historical and emotional value, the family chose not to part with it.

“From the very beginning, our family treated this document as an amanat (trust)," Singh said. “We believed it was our moral duty to return it to the Gandhi family at the right time. When we learnt that Rahul Gandhi was visiting Raebareli, we felt this was the moment to hand it over."

Feroze Gandhi, born in December 1912, was a prominent political figure in post-Independence India. He won the country’s first general election in 1952 from Raebareli, a constituency that has since become closely identified with the Gandhi family. Known for his outspoken stand against corruption, Feroze Gandhi played a significant role in parliamentary debates during the early years of the Republic. He was married to Indira Gandhi, India’s first woman Prime Minister, and was the father of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Feroze Gandhi passed away on September 7, 1960.

The return of the driving licence added a deeply personal and historical layer to Rahul Gandhi’s visit, which was otherwise dominated by political engagements. Earlier in the day, Rahul interacted with Congress and Samajwadi Party workers, held a chaupal, and spoke with MGNREGA labourers, launching sharp attacks on the Narendra Modi-led central government.

Rahul alleged that the Modi government was systematically weakening welfare schemes like MGNREGA to benefit large corporate houses. “The intention is to end MGNREGA so that money meant for poor families and workers is diverted to industrialists like Adani and Ambani," he said, accusing the government and the RSS of undermining the Constitution and the values of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr BR Ambedkar.

Rahul Gandhi had arrived in Raebareli late Monday night and was originally scheduled to return to Delhi on Wednesday morning. However, he left for the national capital on Tuesday evening itself. Since the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, this marked his sixth visit to the constituency, which continued to hold a political and emotional significance for the Gandhi family.

News india Lost For Years, Feroze Gandhi’s Driving Licence Finds Its Way Back To Gandhi Family

Read More