Remembering Arjun Singh, the fierce loyalist of Gandhi family

New Delhi: Today is the 3rd death anniversary of Arjun Singh, the veteran politician of the Indian National Congress. He was born on Nov 5, 1930 to a Rajput family in Sidhi, Madhya Pradesh. Singh's father, Rao Shiv Bahadur Singh, also a Congress politician, was Industry Minister under Jawaharlal Nehru.Arjun Singh was a cabinet minister in P V Narasimha Rao cabinet. He was also the de facto number 2 in Rao cabinet.He resigned from the cabinet after the Babri Masjid was demolished in 1992. After moving out of Rao cabinet, Arjun Singh formed a separate party ‘All India Indira National Congress' along with Narayan Dutt Tiwari (former CM of UP) and K Natwar Singh. All India Indira National Congress didn't last for very long as it merged with Congress when Sonia Gandhi took over as the Congress president Arjun Singh was married to Saroj Devi, who was also from Madhya Pradesh. The couple was blessed with a daughter – Veena and two sons – Ajay and Abhimanyu. Veena and Ajay decided to tread on their father's footprint and have joined active politics. Presently Ajay Singh is the leader of opposition in Madhya Pradesh. Abhimanyu on the other hand is an entrepreneur in Bangalore. Arjun Singh was a staunch loyalist of the Gandhi family. He served as Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh for two terms. Arjun Singh served as the CM of Madhya Pradesh from 1980 – 85. Later, in the year 1988, he was again elected as the State's CM. Arjun Singh was the CM of Madhya Pradesh when the Bhopal Gas tragedy took place.Arjun Singh had the ambitions of becoming the Prime Minister of India but he could not never realize his dream. Arjun Singh stepped into mainstream politics in 1957 where he was elected as an MLA in Madhya Pradesh. From September 1963 till Decmeber 1967, he served as the Minister for Agriculture in the state cabinet. He was also the minister for Information & Public Relations in the Government of Madhya Pradesh. In 1967, he became the minister of Planning and Development in MP govt.Singh was the leader of Opposition from 1977 to 1980 in MP legislative assembly. In April 2000, Singh was elected to the Rajya Sabha.From 2004 to 2009, Singh was the Union Minister of Human Resources & Development under Manmohan Singh's Government.In 2006, he was re- elected to the Rajya Sabha. Arjun Singh was known for his spontaneity and vast knowledge of politics. Arjun Singh breathed his last on 4th March, 2011 following cardiac arrest.