Former Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) president Balraj Madhok, who was one of its founders but marched to ‘his own ideological drum beat’ and thus getting expelled later, passed away on Monday here at AIIMS after over a month’s illness.
Madhok (96) was unwell for some time and had been admitted to AIIMS for a month where he died around 9 am. The BJS founder had authored many a books centered around Kashmir. He also wrote Portrait of a Martyr, a biography of Syama Prasad Mookerjee, the first president of BJS (1951-53) who died in mysterious circumstances in Kashmir prison on 23 June, 1953.
Madhok, along with Mookerjee, is credited with formulating the principles on which the Jana Sangh was formed in 1951. Most of the BJS members later left to form the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 1980.
Born on February 25, 1920, in the undivided Jammu & Kashmir’s Skardu area, Madhok led the BJS to its biggest ever win in 1967 when it won 35 seats in the lok Sabha. His decline began in the 1970s as Atal Bihari Vajpayee and lK Advani rose in prominence and he was expelled from the party in 1973 on disciplinary grounds.
Madhok was at loggerheads with many of the BJS brass, who held the helm in the party from the seventies onwards, including Vajpayee and Advani.
A leading light of the Jana Sangh, the forerunner of Bharatiya Janata Party, in the 1960s and early 70s, Madhok represented the NCT of Delhi and South Delhi in the 2nd and 4th lok Sabha in 1961 and 1967 respectively. He towed a hard line on ‘Hindutva’ and ‘Hindu Rashtra’.
During the Emergency, Madhok was detained under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act for 18 months.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid his last respects to him and met his family members to condole his death.
“Heartfelt condolences on the sad demise of a stalwart leader of Jana Sangh Balraj Madhok. Madhokji’s ideological commitment was strong & clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation & society.
“Had the good fortune of interacting with Madhokji on many occasions. His demise is saddening. Condolences to his family. RIP,” Modi said in earlier tweets.
Madhok was associated with the RSS before the Jana Sangh was founded and was also the founder Secretary of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the pro-Hindutva organisation.
In 1951, he was the convener of the first convention of Bharatiya Jana Sangh and was appointed the national Secretary. In 1966, he was elected as national president of Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
In his message, Advani described him as a leader who was fully committed to Jana Sangh’s ideology and principles.
“I am deeply grieved to learn about the passing away of Balraj Madhok. I mourn Balraj Madhok’s passing away and offer my heartfelt condolences to his two daughters. May the departed soul rest in peace,” he said in his condolence message.
Expressing his condolence, Advani said, “He was fully committed to its (Jana Sangh) ideology and principles. During the Emergency, he was detained for 18 months,” he said.
Union Minister of Science & Technology Harsh Vardhan tweeted, “Balraj Madhok left for heavenly abode today — India loses a great intellectual, thinker and a social reformer. May his soul rest in peace.”