Hyderabad: The NDA - especially the BJP - has lost many stalwart politicians since it came to power in 2014. Manohar Parrikar, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley are some of the easily recognizable faces among them.
The Lok Janshakti Party leader Ram Vilas Paswan, who served as Cabinet Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution was the latest to die on October 8. The alliance also lost Suresh Angadi, who was minister of state for railways in September after he was diagnosed with Covid-19.
The Cabinet Ministers NDA lost since 2014:
Ram Vilas Paswan-- a kingmaker who outlasted many kings
Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, who recently underwent heart surgery at Delhi's Fortis hospital, passed away on October 8, 2020.
The veteran Dalit leader died at the age of 74 at a private hospital where he had recently undergone a heart operation. Paswan believed in making friends and investing in relationships and took pride in describing himself as a cementing force among, at times, warring allies.
Suresh Angadi-- Minister with a common touch
Union Minister of State for Railways, Suresh Chanabasappa Angadi, succumbed to Covid-19 at New Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on September 23, 2020, becoming the first member of the Council of Ministers to die of the deadly disease.
The 65-year-old was elected to the Lok Sabha on a BJP ticket from Belagavi in 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019. In May 2019, Angadi became the MoS for Railways.
People remember him for his ordinary acts of kindness and for the friend he was to them.
Arun Jaitley--Ultimate backroom strategist
Arun Jaitley died of multiple organ failure at Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences on August 24, 2019. He was 66.
• From 26 May 2014 to 14 May 2018 - Finance Minister
• From 13 March 2017 to 3 September 2017 - Minister of Defence
• From 26 May 2014 to 14 May 2018 - Minister of Corporate Affairs
• From 9 November 2014 to 5 July 2016 - Minister of Information and Broadcasting.
One of the most trusted ministers of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Jaitley was acknowledged as the ultimate backroom strategist and a key troubleshooter of the party. As a minister, he had steered major economic legislation, including the flagship Goods and Services Tax, and defended controversial government policies.
Sushma Swaraj-- Most-admired political leader
Sushma Swaraj, former foreign minister and BJP veteran, died on August 6 after a cardiac arrest, leaving political leaders and her legions of admirers in grief. She was 67.
Swaraj was easily one of India's most-admired political leaders. She left a legacy of an easily-accessible politician who helped Indians abroad in distress with her quick response on Twitter to requests for help when she was the foreign minister.
She began her political career with Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) - student wing of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - in the 1970s and later joined the Janata Party.
Manohar Parrikar-- Leader accessible to people
Manohar Parrikar served as defence minister between 2014 and 2017. He died on 17 March 2019 at the age of 63 from pancreatic cancer at his residence in Panaji.
A three-time Chief Minister of Goa, Mr Parrikar was known for his impeccable record and simple lifestyle.
He was a leader accessible to the people and moved around without any hassle. A technocrat-turned politician, he had started as a functionary of the BJP's ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, before entering active politics.
Ananth Kumar--First to a person speak in Kannada in UN
Ananth Kumar a prominent politician from Karnataka who was the Chemicals and fertilizers minister died at th age of 59, battling lung cancer on November 12, 2018.
He is remembered as the first person to speak in Kannada in the United Nations.
He was the "youngest" minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee's cabinet in 1998 and served as the Civil Aviation minister, also Minister for Tourism, Sports, Youth Affairs and Culture, Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation.
He is also remembered as the first person to speak in Kannada in the United Nations.
Anil Madhav Dave - An Environmentalist
Anil Madhav Dave, a leader from Madhya Pradesh who was the environment minister, died of cardiac arrest on May 18 in 2017. member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he served as the Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Narendra Modi ministry from July 2016 till the time of his death.
He was a member of various committees including the Committee on Water Resources and the Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. He was also a member of the Parliamentary Forum on Global Warming and Climate Change from March 2010 to June 2010.[6]
Gopinath Munde - Mass leader of Maharashtra
On June 3 in 2014 in a road accident in the national capital soon after the government came to power.
Gopinath Munde was the Union Minister for Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Drinking Water and Sanitation.
A leader of the ABVP during the Emergency, Munde was jailed and was let out of jail only when it was lifted. Actively involved with RSS affairs in Maharashtra, he was made President of the Maharashtra unit of the BJP's youth wing, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha. Munde was the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha between 1991 and 1995.
Munde represented the Beed constituency in the 15th Lok Sabha (2009-2014) and was re-elected in 2014.
Apart from Union Ministers, death has snatched many talented MPs from the BJP in the last five years including BJP MP.
