POLITICIAN WHO BOUND EVERYONE WITH THE BOND OF CLOSE TIES

This year marks the birth centenary of the country’s former Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Remembering him means remembering the tradition of politics in which politicians create their sublime personality by rising above party thinking. Bhairon Singh ji was like this. Despite being in politics, he always remained away from its narrowmindedness. Bhairon Singh Shekhawat ji, a profound scholar of constitutional matters, was a rare personality associated with political correctness. I also think that he was not a person but a constitutional institution in itself.

While holding constitutional posts, he established such ideals of those institutions which no one can forget even if they want to. He was a member of Rajya Sabha. Despite adverse circumstances, he served as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan thrice and also handled the post of Leader of Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly very well. Due to this journey of democracy, he was selected for the prestigious post of Vice President of the country in the year 2002. But what is different from all this is his personality in which prominent politicians of every party were able to tie themselves with him by the thread of affinity. I have many memories with him. He was an ideal personality who rose above political thinking and established close relations with people of every party. I believe that how to maintain the sanctity of the democratic process can be learned from them.

As the Chief Minister, the schemes he started like ‘Antyodaya Yojana’, ‘Food in lieu of work’ not only benefited the people living below the poverty line, but other states across the country also gained popularity by adopting these schemes.

The most distinctive aspect that I find about him is his ‘Babosa’ appearance. People fondly called him ‘Babosa’ and this address became associated with him because earlier people used to come to the government and during his tenure the work of taking the government to the people was done. ‘Babosa’ is the one who takes care of everyone. Actually he was very friendly. You yourself assess his constitutional work that he supported the abolition of Zamindari though himself hailing from a Zamindari family. Despite opposition, he condemned the practice of Sati in the Roop Kanwar Sati case. To provide rights to the poor, arrangements were made to ensure government schemes reach them. I myself have seen Bhairon Singh Shekhawat ji very closely. He tried to appear as he was. I spoke Hindi and felt that he used to use Marwari words again and again in his Hindi also. These were his values. Many times I told him some work and then I forgot it. But it was surprising that after some time he would inform about its completion. He used to remember even the smallest things. Whenever he got any opinion even from the officials, he used to investigate it.

Many times, in big public meetings, I saw someone standing at the end and he used to call the person by name from a distance and used to go near him. These were the values. He had public concerns. Democracy is strengthened by this. You should have complete knowledge about those who have elected you and sent you to parliamentary institutions. You should have this kind of connection not only with your workers but also with the common people.

I have some knowledge of how the country’s biggest scheme ‘Antyodaya’ came to light. Bhairon Singh ji was closely associated with the culture of the Constitution. He gave concrete shape to this plan for the upliftment of Daridranarayan. The fulfillment of all the social, economic and political justice that our Constitution talks about is included in ‘Antyodaya’. Bhairon Singh ji connected Antyodaya with human compassion. In this way, he connected every common and special thing with democratic values. A supporter of sublime human values along with political wisdom, he was associated with the skill of maintaining relationships in which the distinction between one’s own and another’s disappears. The true tribute to him is that we imbibe the culture of harmony by following the ideal constitutional values given by him and create a world of belonging by establishing purity in politics.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

KALRAJ MISHRA THE WRITER IS GOVERNOR OF RAJASTHAN