V. Kalyanam

V. Kalyanam (15 August 1922 – 4 May 2021) was an Indian freedom fighter and was Mahatma Gandhi's personal secretary during the last few years of Gandhi's life (1943–48).^[1][2][3] He joined the freedom struggle during Quit India Movement in 1942,^[4] and then worked with Gandhi till Gandhi's assassination. Kalyanam was just behind Gandhi when Nathuram Godse fired the shots.^[5] According to Kalyanam, Gandhi died instantly after being shot and never uttered "Hey Ram" as his last words.^[5] He was the first to inform Nehru and Patel about Gandhi's death.^[6]

V. Kalyanam
Born	(1922-08-15)15 August 1922 Shimla, Punjab, British India
Died	4 May 2021(2021-05-04) (aged 98) Chennai, India

Kalyanam later worked as Edwina Mountbatten's secretary in London. He returned a few years later and then worked for C. Rajagopalachari and Jayaprakash Narayan.^[4]

Kalyanam criticized Congress Party for forgetting the legacy of Gandhi.^[3][7] He said Gandhi wanted to dissolve the party which had started becoming corrupt.^[8] He even said that Jawaharlal Nehru was responsible for corruption in India.^[9]

Kalyanam joined the Aam Aadmi Party's Chennai wing Inauguration in 2014, which was portrayed as if he had joined the party. ^[10]

He died of age-related ailments on May 4, 2021.^[11]