Madhya Pradesh Governor Lalji Tandon Dies At 85
Lalji Tandon, the veteran political leader from Uttar Pradesh, was cremated with full state honours.
Madhya Pradesh Governor Lalji Tandon, a veteran political leader from Uttar Pradesh where he had served as a cabinet minister, died early Tuesday.
The 85-year-old leader was admitted to the hospital on June 11 with breathing problems, fever and difficulty in urination.
He died at 5:35 a.m. at Indore’s Medanta Hospital, according to his son Ashutosh Tandon, who is a cabinet minister in Uttar Pradesh.
Lalji Tandon is survived by his wife and three sons.
His mortal remains were consigned to flames at Gulala Ghat in Lucknow in the evening.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, state Bharatiya Janata Party chief Swatantradev Singh, a number of ministers in the state government and party workers were present during the cremation.
The cremation was held with full state honours, spokesperson of BJP's Lucknow unit Pushkar Shukla said.
According to Medanta Hospital Director Dr Rakesh Kapoor, Tandon died following a cardiac arrest.
"He was admitted on June 11 and on investigation he was found suffering from a liver ailment. Later, liver and kidneys stopped functioning and he was put on the life support system. Despite all efforts, he breathed his last on Tuesday morning," Kapoor said.
Lalji Tandon's body was kept at his official residence in Hazratganj and later at his Sondhi Tola home in the Chowk area for people to pay their last respects.
Condoling the demise of Lalji Tandon, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he will be remembered for his untiring efforts to serve society. In a series of tweets, Modi recalled that Lalji Tandon played a key role in strengthening the BJP in Uttar Pradesh.
Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu described Tandon as a "people's leader" who worked relentlessly for the uplift of the downtrodden. "He will be remembered as a dedicated social worker, great thinker, able administrator and a distinguished parliamentarian," the Vice-President's Secretariat tweeted.
Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel recalled Lalji Tandon's contribution to the state's politics as well as in the development of Lucknow .
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said, "I had the opportunity to work with Tandonji. His long public life was dedicated to serving people and he left his mark through his work."
He was popular and the development works done by him are still praised by the people," Singh said in a tweet.
MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan condoled the death of Tandon and paid floral tributes to the departed leader in Lucknow.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and BSP president Mayawati also expressed grief over Lalji Tandon's death. "In his death, the country has lost a popular leader, capable administrator and a social worker who was an integral part of Lucknow," the chief minister said.
The Uttar Pradesh government has announced a three-day mourning as a mark of respect to Lalji Tandon, a former cabinet minister, an official spokesman said.
Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot also condoled the death of the Madhya Pradesh governor.
Speaker of Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly Hriday Narayan Dixit too condoled the death of Lalji Tandon.
Belonging to the Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani-era BJP leaders, the former Lok Sabha MP took oath as the Madhya Pradesh governor on July 29 last year when the Congress was in power in the state, after serving in the same post in Bihar for nearly 11 months.