Gurugram, 20 December
Om Prakash Chautala (89), president of Indian National Lok Dal (INLO) and five-time Chief Minister of Haryana, passed away here today. Former Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhary Devilal’s son Chautala suffered a heart attack at home. He was immediately rushed to Medanta Hospital, where he succumbed at around 12 noon. He had been battling age-related health problems for some time. Chautala will be cremated with full state honors at Teja Khera Farm in Sirsa district tomorrow, Saturday, at 3 pm. The Haryana government has announced three days of mourning in the state in his honour. An official holiday has also been declared on Saturday in the state. His family has two sons and three daughters, while his wife Sneh Lata passed away five years ago. Born on January 1, 1935, Om Prakash Chautala was the eldest of five children of former Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhary Devilal. He dropped out after primary but in 2013, when Chautala was sent to Tihar jail in connection with the teacher recruitment scam, he passed 10th. After this, at the age of 82, he also completed 12th. He was released from jail in 2021. Chautala, his son Ajay Chautala and IAS officer Sanjeev Kumar, along with 53 others, were convicted in 2000 in the case of illegal recruitment of 3,206 junior basic teachers. -News-Patiala
Modi, Saini, Hooda, Farooq and Sukhbir among others expressed regret
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Haryana Chief Minister Naib Singh Saini, Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Randeep Singh Surjewala and Kumari Selja, National Conference leaders Farooq Abdullah. Umar Abdullah and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Singh Badal on the demise of Om Prakash Chautala. has expressed regret. Modi said on ‘X’ that Chautala was active in Haryana politics for many years and promoted the works of Devilal. Saini said that Chautala’s death is a big loss for the country and Haryana politics. Hooda said that Om Prakash Chautala was a popular leader of Haryana. Sukhbir Badal said that due to the separation of Om Prakash Chautala, he and his family have suffered a great loss. He said that it is an unbearable shock for farmers and marginalized people. -News-Patiala
