NEW DELHI, 23 June 2005 — Former governor of Bihar and Gujarat Sunder Singh Bhandari died of a heart attack here yesterday. He was 84.
The veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Bhandari, who recently invited criticism from party hard-liners for his demand for a probe into the 2002 Gujarat riots, had been ailing for some time and died in his sleep, family sources said.
A founder member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, Bhandari had held several posts within the BJP, including stints as the party’s vice president, general secretary and spokesperson.
He was appointed Bihar governor in 1998 when the BJP-led coalition came to power. He had drawn criticism from the then ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) for playing a partisan role during his tenure as governor.
Always a staunch Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) supporter, Bhandari recently created a political flutter when he said Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi had failed to control the post-Godhra communal violence — when ironically he himself was governor of the state.
Though he diluted his charges against Modi later, he stuck to his demand for an inquiry into the state government’s role in the riots that killed more than 2,000 people, mostly Muslims. The funeral is likely to take place in the evening at Nigambodh Ghat here.
