Arun Jaitley - former Finance, Defence and Law Minister; former leader of the house and leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha; one of Bharatiya Janata Party’s tallest figures and a key architect of its campaign strategy across elections; a legal luminary; and among the most prominent individuals in Indian public life - passed away on Saturday. He was 66.
ऑर्डिनेंस फैक्ट्री के कर्मचारियों ने हड़ताल वापस ली, सरकार ने ली राहत की सांस
Jaitley’s death triggered an outpouring of grief, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On a visit to UAE, the PM tweeted: “Arun Jaitley Ji was a political giant, towering intellectual and legal luminary. He was an articulate leader who made a lasting contribution to India. His passing away is very saddening.” There were eight different facets of Jaitley’s life that would stand out.
The first was as a student leader who fought for democratic freedoms. A quintessential Delhi boy, who went to school and college in the city, Arun Jaitley’s association with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s student wing, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), started and got cemented in Delhi University’s Sri Ram College of Commerce and then Law Faculty. And then, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed the Emergency. Jaitley, president of the Delhi University Students Union, emerged as a major figure of resistance, and participated in protests, before he was arrested and kept behind bars for close to two years. This legacy - of having fought authoritarianism - would help boost his political credentials.