Hillary hearts India: The woman who would be US President

Former First Lady Hillary Clinton announced her bid for Presidency via a video message last night in the US. However she’s no stranger to India. From her first trip as First lady in 1995 to her most recent one in 2012 as the Secretary of State, Hillary and India have always had a special connection. US First Lady Hillary Clinton and her daughter Chelsea visited the Taj Mahal, in Agra during a break in the first lady’s 12-day tour of South Asia in 1995. Clinton and her daughter spent 90 minutes at the white marble mausoleum built by Emperor Shah Jahan. [caption id=“attachment_2194287” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  AFP image[/caption] She was also in India to pay her last respects and laid a wreath for Mother Teresa at the funeral held in September in 1997. Hillary also wrote of leading a US delegation to Mother Teresa’s funeral in her memoir. [caption id=“attachment_2194295” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Reuters[/caption] Hillary, then the US Secretary of State, is pictured here as she speaks with classical dancers after they performed Bharatanatyam, a traditional Indian dance, at the Kalakshetra cultural centre in the southern Indian city of Chennai in 2012. [caption id=“attachment_2194291” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Reuters image[/caption] Hillary even met Bollywood star Aamir Khan to discuss education in Mumbai. The two discussed education and child rights for over an hour before an audience that was largely made up of NGOs working for child rights and education, and students and professors of St Xavier’s college in Mumbai. [caption id=“attachment_2194301” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Reuters[/caption] Then and now: Hillary Clinton and Sonia Gandhi in 1995 and during her recent meeting in 2012. [caption id=“attachment_2194325” align=“alignleft” width=“825”]  1995 and 2009[/caption]