Current affairs

Former Union Minister Sharad Yadav passes away at 75: PM Modi and leaders pay tribute!

By alagu, 13 January, 2023
Sharad Yadav, Narendra Modi, MK Stalin

Former Union Minister and prominent parliamentarian Sharad Yadav has passed away on Thursday at the age of 75 in Gurugram due to his health ailments. The veteran politician was suffering from prolong kidney-related issues and was under regular medical treatment. After learning about his demise, several national leaders including the Prime Minister have paid tribute and remebered his contribution.

Yadav, who was the former chief of Janata Dal United, JD(U), was known for being a socialist leader and was active in politics for nearly five decades. He was receiving dialysis regularly and according to PTI, Yadav's associates said he collapsed at his Chhatarpur residence on Thursday night after which he was rushed to Fortis Hospital in Gurugram. However, he breathed his last. 

In a statement, the hospital said that Yadav was brought to the emergency ward in an unconscious and unresponsive state. "On examination, he did not have any pulse or recordable blood pressure. He underwent CPR as per ACLS protocols. Despite best efforts, he could not be revived and was declared dead at 10.19 pm", the hospital added. Yadav's daughter Subhashini Sharad Yadav wrote on Twitter in Hindi, "Papa is no more." 

As nation mourns Yadav's demise, his death has brought an end to an era with a remarkable political career and an endearing rapport. Born on July 1, 1947, in Madhya Pradesh, Yadav was a graduate in electrical engineering and he was also an agriculturist. Yadav was inspired by Ram Manohar Lohia's socialism which drawn him to politics and in 1974, he contested in the Jabalpur Lok Sabha by-election as the joint opposition candidate. He won the race and entered the Lok Sabha for the first time with six more terms in the future. 

He had a political affiliation with Bharatiya Lok Dal and in he was re-elected from Jabalpur in the 1977 polls. However, he lost the next election to the Congress candidate Munder Sharma after which he decided to explore political venture outside his home state of Madhya Pradesh. After having a political base in Uttar Pradesh, Yadav finally established his political fortress in Bihar. 

In December 1989, he became the Union Minister for the first time and served as the minister for Textiles and Food Processing Industries in the then Prime Minister VP Singh's cabinet. In the 1999 Lok Sabha polls, Sharat Yadav contested from the Madhepura Lok Sabha seat in Bihar in Janata Dal (United) ticket and his immediate contender was Rashtriya Janata Dal's Lalu Prasad Yadav. In a hard-fought battle, Sharad Yadav won the race in a margin of 30,000 votes and secured his sixth term in Lok Sabha. 

After defeating Lalu Prasad Yadav, Sharad Yadav became the Union Minister for the second time and this time, he served in Atal Bihari Vajpayee's cabinet. After his tenure came to an end in 2004, Yadav was elected to Rajya Sabha for his second term and in the 2009 polls, Yadav was elected to the Lok Sabha for the seventh term from Madhepura. 

During his decades-long tenure in the Parliament -  seven times as Lok Sabha MP and four times as Rajya Sabha MP, Yadav had served in key parliament committees. As Sharad Yadav was buidling his base in Bihar, he had observed a close rapport with Nitish Kumar, who then led JD(U) and is current Chief Minister of Bihar. Their ties were broken in 2018 when Sharad Yadav parted ways with Nitish Kumar and launched a new political party. 

In May 2018, Sharad Yadav had launched Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD) after quitting from JD(U) due to its alliance with the BJP in Bihar. In 2022, Sharad Jadav merged LJD with Lalu Prasad Yadav's RJD. After 2017, Sharad Yadav was not serving in any committee and was remaining as a Rajya Sabha MP from Bihar. He also had encountered several health setbacks and was receiving treatment for kidney-related ailments. 

On Thursday, he collapsed at his residence after which he was rushed to Fortis Hospital in Gurugram, where he breathed his last. After learning about his demise, several national leaders have been paying tribute to him. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter and wrote, "Pained by the passing away of Shri Sharad Yadav Ji. In his long years in public life, he distinguished himself as MP and Minister. He was greatly inspired by Dr. Lohia's ideals. I will always cherish our interactions. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti." 

President Droupadi Murmu wrote, "Saddened to know about the passing away of former Union Minister Shri Sharad Yadav. A student leader of seventies who fought for democratic values, Sharad ji was an important national voice of the dispossessed in Parliament. My deepest condolences to his family and admirers." Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge wrote, "I am saddened by the demise of Mr Sharad Yadav, senior leader of socialist stream of the country, former JDU President."

"Serving the country as a former Union Minister and an outstanding Parliamentarian for decades, he strengthened the politics of equality. My deepest condolences of his family and supporters", Kharge added. Taking to Twitter, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote, "Deeply saddened by the passing away of RJD leader and former Union Minister Thiru. Sharad Yadav. We have lost one of the tallest socialist leaders who remained deeply committed to the ideals of democracy and secularism till his last breath. My heartfelt condolences." 

 

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