By Arun Pratap Singh
DEHRADUN, 4 Dec: The Uttarakhand Assembly today paid rich tribute to ND Tiwari who passed away on 18 October, 2018, in New Delhi. It may be recalled that Tiwari was Chief Minister of undivided Uttar Pradesh on four occasions and was also the first elected Chief Minister of Uttarakhand. As soon as the House assembled for the day and Question Hour began, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prakash Pant proposed all the business proposed for the day including the Question Hour, except for laying of Supplementary Demands on the table of the House, to be suspended under Rule 315 of the Uttarakhand Assembly Proceedings Rules as a mark of respect to Tiwari. The House had assembled for the first time since Tiwari’s demise on 18 October. The House approved suspension of all the business to pay tribute to Tiwari.
Leader of the House Trivendra Singh Rawat formally informed the House of the demise of former CM ND Tiwari and described his death as a huge loss not only for the state, but for the whole country. He reminded the House that Tiwari was really a Vikas Purush since he had a vision for the development of Uttarakhand. Rawat further emphasised that Tiwari was never bound by narrow political constraints and always treated leaders from across the political spectrum in the same manner. His death marked the end of an era since there was no other leader of his era in active politics of the country. He added that Tiwari took special care of new MLAs and guided them by rising above political interests. He held several senior level posts in UP and Central politics after beginning his political career as a first time MLA in UP Assembly in 1952. He also recalled how, when Tiwari was CM of Uttarakhand and Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the PM, he (Tiwari) met him along with senior BJP leader Bhagat Singh Koshiyari and managed to convince Vajpayee to grant a special industrial package to Uttarakhand and because of the special package, lots of industries came to the state.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prakash Pant claimed that Tiwari’s death had created a huge vacuum in the Indian Polity and everyone in the state and the country felt pained at his departure. He was a mirror that could show the reality to the whole country on most issues. Pant further recalled that Tiwari never lost his temper and never misbehaved with anyone, even if he was angry with someone for some reason. He was a firm believer in maintaining the traditions and practices of Parliamentary democracy. It was ironic that during the freedom struggle, ND Tiwari and his father Purnanand Tiwari were lodged in the same prison by the British. He was a brilliant student and was a first class first in MA Political Science from Allahabad University.
Leader of the House Indira Hridayesh also recalled several episodes related to the late leader and stated she had been appointed Finance Minister of Uttarakhand by Tiwari for the first time and she could handle the department because of his continued guidance, since he had a lot of knowledge and experience in handling the finance portfolio in UP, as well as at the Centre. She, too, recalled that Tiwari never differentiated between leaders on the basis of political affiliation to the extent that several Congress leaders accused him of favouring the opposition leaders unduly over Congress leaders.
Transport Minister Yashpal Arya said he owed his political career and success to Tiwari, who had remained his political guru and guide for a long time. He learned the finer aspects of politics under the tutelage of Tiwari.
Forest Minister Harak Singh Rawat, Agriculture Minister Subodh Uniyal (who had been an advisor to Tiwari when the latter was CM of Uttarakhand) also paid rich tributes. BJP’s Munna Singh Chauhan, Congress MLA Qazi Nizamuddin and Ram Singh Kaira were among those who also paid tribute to Tiwari. Later, the House was adjourned for the day following tabling of Supplementary Grants by Finance Minister Prakash Pant.
