Facts about Phoolan Devi
Phoolan Devi died at 37 years old
Died: July 25, 2001 (shot to death)
Birthplace: Gorha Ka Purwa, Uttar Pradesh, India
Best known as: Modern India's "Bandit Queen"
4 Good Links
Links to Phoolan Devi
List of online resources, some still around, some notPhoolan Devi, Bandit Queen
Good place to get a start on your online researchIndia's Bandit Queen
Good recap of her strange, short lifeThe Very Idea of Phoolan Devi
Opinion piece that's not so impressed with her folk hero statusShare this:
Phoolan Devi Biography
Of a lower-caste background from a small village in India, Phoolan Devi was known as the "Bandit Queen," a gun-slinging gang leader who fought authority and became a champion of the downtrodden. She first made a name for herself in 1981 as the leader of a gang who killed 22 rivals in what was dubbed the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. Pursued by the government and rivals, she was arrested and imprisoned in 1983. Still a popular hero, in 1994 she was released and elected to Parliament as a member of the Samajwadi Party. In July of 2001 she was gunned down by four men in front of her house in New Delhi.