One of the greatest political figures of Central India, Vidya Charan Shukla, who is largely known as Vidya Bhaiya, left thousands of his die-hard supporters sobbing on Tuesday when the news of him loosing his battle for life flashed on news channels.
His death was widely expected as his health was showing no signs of improvement after receiving multiple-bullet shots when Maoists ambushed the convoy of the Congress party in Bastar.
Dozens of people thronged his residence-cum-farm house (Radheshayam Bhavan) in Raipur soon after his death was confirmed and his close aides had a very emotional period throughout afternoon as thousands mourned the demise of their leader who spent nearly six-decades in active politics and represented Congress nine times in the lok Sabha, from 1957 at an early age of 28.
He was one of the youngest parliamentarians who became a Minister in Indira Gandhi's Cabinet and during the Emergency, June 26, 1975 to March 21, 1977, he was accused of muzzling media as Information & Broadcasting Minister.
All India Congress Committee Treasurer and senior Congress leader of Chhattisgarh, Motilal Vora, said, 'It was a great shock for me as well as the entire Congress party, a loss which can hardly be expressed in words'.
Shukla's bête noire and Chhattisgarh's former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi remarked, "India has lost a great political personality and a towering figure, filling the vacuum created by his death is impossible". Terming him as a martyr, Jogi said, "even the Maoists' bullets could not deter him from fighting for the people.''
VC Shukla was born on August 2, 1929 at Raipur. He completed his graduation from Morris College Nagpur in 1951. He was the son of Pt Ravi Shankar Shukla who was a lawyer, freedom fighter and hardcore Congressman who became the first Chief Minister of reorganised Madhya Pradesh. Shukla's elder brother Shyama Charan Shukla had also held the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister's post for three times.
In a long political career, Vidya Bhaiya held many key portfolios in Central Government including Communications, Home, Defence, Finance, Planning, Information & Broadcasting, Civil Supplies, External Affairs, Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources. He was credited for installing TV tower for the first time in Raipur.
Shukla has a massive contribution, probably most than any other leader, who brought development to his home State, Chhattisgarh. Shukla's critics claim that he was an arrogant person who hardly had any patience of listening to the voices. He also carried a very high ambition in politics and reshuffled several parties including the BJP.
Shukla deserted the Congress for the first time in 1977 when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was voted out. Her son and then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi rehabilitated him after his mother's assassination in 1984 but Shukla again quit the party with VP Singh to form the Jan Morcha in 1989.
Shukla joined the Samajwadi Janata Party when Chandra Shekhar became Prime Minister and rejoined the Congress when PV Narasimha Rao succeeded him. He left the Congress again in April 2003 after being denied the chief ministership of Chhattisgarh when it was carved out of Madhya Pradesh in November 2000.
Shukla joined the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in April 2003. He then joined the BJP on the eve of parliamentary polls in 2004 and left the BJP in September 2004 and rejoined Congress in late 2007, for the fourth time.
Chhattisgarh's ruling BJP has declared a three-day State mourning as a mark of respect to a great son and seasoned politician of Chhattisgarh.
