LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh government has announced three-day state mourning as a mark of respect to Lalji Tandon who died in office as the Governor of Madhya Pradesh.
Tandon passed away after a prolonged illness in Lucknow on Tuesday. He was 85.
He was admitted to Lucknow’s Medanta hospital on June 11 after complaining of breathlessness, difficulty in urination, and fever. Tandon had been on life support system since he was admitted to the hospital.
Leaders cutting across party lines have condoled Tandon’s death. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, other central ministers, and chief ministers also expressed shock and paid tributes to Tandon.
While UP Governor Anandiben Patel, CM Yogi Adityanath and Deputy CM Dr. Dinesh Sharma paid a visit to his residence in the old city area, MP CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan was also visited state capital Lucknow to pay his tribute to the departed leader and take part in his funeral.
Tandon is survived by wife Krishna Tandon and three sons. One of his sons, Ashutosh Tandon, is a minister in the Yogi cabinet.
Tandon was born in Chowk area of Lucknow on April 12, 1935, to Shivnarayan Tandon and Annapurna Devi.
He first found his way into Uttar Pradesh assembly as a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) in 1978 and then in 1990. During his second term as MLC, Tandon was made a minister for the first time and was given the charge of the power department.
Tandon contested UP Assembly elections in 1996 and was elected to the state assembly. He was re-elected and became MLA thrice between 1996 to 2009. From 1997 to 1999, he was the urban development minister in Kalyan Singh's cabinet.
A close confidant and a friend of late PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lalji Tandon was chosen by the BJP high command to represent Lucknow in the Lok Sabha after Vajpayee. He represented Lucknow in Lok Sabha for five terms before hanging his boots in 2009.
Before becoming the Governor of Madhya Pradesh, Tandon served as Bihar Governor from August 2018 to July 2019.
Paying tributes to the veteran BJP leader, PM Modi said Tandon will be remembered for his untiring efforts to serve the society. “He played a key role in strengthening the BJP in Uttar Pradesh. He made a mark as an effective administrator by, always giving importance to public welfare. Anguished by his passing away,” PM Modi tweeted.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh also condoled Tandon’s death and remembered him as one of the tallest leaders of Uttar Pradesh.