Six-time Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who passed away in Shimla on Thursday morning, would go down in history as the only Indian politician who worked with all the Prime Ministers of the country during his political career spanning nearly 59 years.
Handpicked by Jawaharlal Nehru to contest the Lok Sabha in 1962, Virbhadra went on to be a member of Parliament as well as the Himachal Legislative Assembly multiple times. In the process, he gathered tremendous experience and imbibed the best qualities from the Prime Ministers and politicians from different generations as well as periods.
When Indira Gandhi decided to replace Ram Lal as the Himachal Chief Minister in the early 1980s, she had virtually made up her mind to give the coveted position to veteran politician and former Himachal Assembly Speaker, Des Raj Mahajan. However, Mahajan passed away suddenly and she chose Virbhadra over many other contenders.
Virbhadra, recalling his meeting with Indira Gandhi, once told me that he asked the Prime Minister if she had any candidates for ministerial berths. She retorted angrily that if that had been the case, she would have given him a list of nominees to be included in the Cabinet as well. She said that he should constitute his own team and if he fails to deliver, she would hold him responsible.
The message was clear to him and he understood that she wanted to groom him for bigger things and thus had reposed her confidence in his abilities. Therefore, it was now up to him to prove his mettle and live up to the expectations of his leader. Needless to say, he never let her down and went on to become the unquestioned leader of the Himalayan state.
Virbhadra did politics on his own terms, and he did not get intimidated by even powerful leaders. There was a time when P.V. Narasimha Rao wanted to make Pandit Sukh Ram the Chief Minister, but he never allowed that to happen, forcing the Prime Minister to accept him as the sole leader from the state.
Virbhadra was made to look small several times as per the ways of the Congress during Sonia Gandhi’s presidentship. However, he did not succumb to any pressures and defied all efforts to cut him to size. There was a time when he threatened to leave the party forcing the Congress high command to make him the Pradesh Congress chief, replacing Kaul Singh, who had served in his council of ministers.
Virbhadra had an excellent rapport with even the Opposition leaders, who acknowledged his political clout. BJP president J.P. Nadda and Virbhadra shared a very close personal bond even though they were ideologically opposed to each other. There are several stories about their relationship in Himachal’s political circles that are both interesting and educative. In 2002, Virbhadra was sought to be replaced by a senior leader, Vidya Stokes, as the CM. If that did not happen, it was because the MLAs, who had come to Delhi to express solidarity with Stokes, changed their mind after reaching Shimla, out of both fear and respect for Virbhadra. It is significant to add here that R.K. Dhawan, who was sent to Shimla to oversee the election and was his close friend, ensured that the MLAs stood behind him fully.
Virbhadra was often accused of favouring people from upper Himachal over lower Himachal, a charge which did not stand the test of elections; the Congress won from areas dominated by the saffron brigade under his leadership many times. He had a unique style of functioning and depended heavily on his trusted lieutenants in his staff, mostly drawn from the Kinnaur region of the state. However, he also saw some political reverses and the only election he lost was to his predecessor in Congress, Thakur Ram Lal, a friend and to some degree a mentor at one stage.
Virbhadra had attained his education from Bishop Cotton School in Shimla and St Stephens’ College. His passing away has left a big void in the politics of Himachal Pradesh in general and the Congress in particular.