Chhattisgarh governor passes away at 90
CHANDIGARH: Chhattisgarh governor and former Punjab deputy chief minister Balram Dass Tandon passed away at the age of 90 in Raipur on Tuesday.
Tandon breathed his last at the state-run Dr BR Ambedkar Memorial Hospital where he was rushed on Tuesday morning after he complained of uneasiness, the governor’s secretary, Surendra Kumar Jasiwal, told news agency Press Trust of India (PTI).
He was kept in the hospital’s critical care unit in view of his serious condition, he said.
Tandon suffered a heart attack, the hospital’s medical superintendent, Dr Vivek Choudhary, said.
Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh announced a seven-day state mourning.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled Tandon’s demise, saying he would be remembered for his opposition to the Emergency.
“We have l ost a widely respected public figure whose service to society will always be remembered. My thoughts are with his family and well-wishers in this hour of grief,” Modi tweeted. He also recalled Tandon’s efforts for peace and progress in Punjab.
“Passionate about sectors like industry and labour welfare, his administrative experience added great value to the state. He will be remembered for his courage while opposing the Emergency,” the prime minister added.
A loyal Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker, Tandon was the linchpin of the alliance between Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
He was Punjab deputy chief minister in the Justice (retd) Gurnam Singh Akali Dal-jan Sangh ministry in 1969-70 . He also served as a cabinet minister in 1977-79 and in 1997-2002 in the ministries headed by Parkash Singh Badal.
Tandon remained a legislator from Amritsar for a record five times from 1960 to 1977. He fought and won from the Rajpura assembly constituency in 1997. He was imprisoned in 1975 during the Emergency for 19 months.
Tandon was appointed the governor of Chhattisgarh in July 2014. His son, Sanjay Tandon, is the current president of the Chandigarh unit of the BJP.