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To their surprise she declined it.
She was no fool. She knew that she had still to learn the art and craft of Indian politics and saw through the wiles and guiles of what came to be contemptuously known as the Syndicate made up of kingmakers like Kamaraj Nadar who referred to her as a goongi gudia (dumb doll) whom it would be easy to remote-control. They didn't have the popular appeal of the Nehru-Gandhi mantle.
Indira's refusal was different from her D-i-L's. The latter too is somewhat of a Gandhi but was too scared of a certain opposition lady who threatened to shave her head (her own) if a foreigner is made India's PM:
...In a heavily publicized and emotionally charged episode following the 2004 elections when the Congress was set to form the government, she threatened to shave her head, don a white saree, and eat groundnuts (symbollically mourning) if Sonia, the Italian-born Congress leader, became prime minister...
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-sushma-swaraj-the-politician-who-once-threatened-to-shave-her-head-1325066
I never could understand this Hindi Belt tonsure threat...I mean, so many young happily married ladies of AP get their heads shaved routinely at Tirupati whenever they tempt Lord Balajee to fulfill their wishes:
As you can see, the temple town has even lady-barbers now. The popular slogan after a tonsure and bath is:
"Govinda! Govinda!! Govinda!!!"
Also, a certain cute lady agreed to get her sweet head shaved for an experimental movie:
And she was no Telugu lady, nor a thoroughbred Hindi heartland one either...some mixed parentage in which East met West once again.
Coming back to the D-i-L of the Dynasty, she then thought up a clever scheme by which the next in the dynasty's seat could be kept warm till he attains a suitable mental age...and so she foisted the crown on an obedient non-threatening intellectual who could never win an election to the Lok Sabha.
But a popular tea-seller had different ideas and came up with the new slogan:
"Good Times are Coming! Good Times are Coming!! Good Times are Coming!!!"
and snatched the cup from the lip:
But Mousie, thou art no thy-lane,
In proving foresight may be vain:
The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men
Gang aft agley,
An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,
For promis’d joy!
...Posted by Ishani
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