Indira Hridayesh (24 March 1941 – 13 June 2021) was an Indian politician, from the state of Uttarakhand. She was a member of the Indian National Congress party. Hridayesh was elected to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council for four terms, from 1974 to 2000. She was elected to the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly in 2002, 2012, and 2017, and between 2002 and 2017, was the State Finance Minister for Uttarakhand. From 2017 onward, she was the leader of the Opposition for the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly.

Dr. Indira Hridayesh
Leader of the Opposition
Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly
In office
2017 – 13 June 2021
Preceded byAjay Bhatt
Succeeded byPritam Singh
Member of Legislative Assembly
for Haldwani
In office
2012 – 13 June 2021
Preceded byBanshidhar Bhagat
Succeeded bySumit Hridayesh
In office
2002–2007
Preceded byTilak Raj Behar
Succeeded byBanshidhar Bhagat
Personal details
Born(1941-03-24)24 March 1941
Allahabad, United Provinces, British India
(now in Uttar Pradesh, India)
Died13 June 2021(2021-06-13) (aged 80)
Delhi, India
Political partyIndian National Congress
SpouseHridayesh Kumar

Biography

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Hridayesh was born on 24 March 1941, either in Allahabad or in Pilbhit, in Uttar Pradesh, according to sources. Her family was from Dasauli, in Uttar Pradesh.[1] She had a master's degree and a doctorate.[2] She had three sons. She was diagnosed with COVID-19, and underwent cardiac surgery in 2021. She died on 13 June 2021, of cardiac arrest.[3]

Career

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Hridayesh entered active politics in the mid-1970s, as part of the Indian National Congress (INC) party. She won her first election in 1974, to the upper house of the state of Uttar Pradesh's bicameral legislature, i.e. the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council. She won second, third and fourth terms to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council from 1986-1992, 1992-1998, and 1998-2000. Hridayesh represented Haldwani constituency, which was in undivided Uttar Pradesh. In 2000, after Uttar Pradesh was divided into smaller states, she became a member of the Interim Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly for the new state of Uttarakhand. She won three more terms to the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, from 2002-2007, 2012-2017, and 2017-2021.[2][4] During her last term, she was leader of the opposition for the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly.[5]

From 2012 to 2017, she was the Minister of Finance for Uttarakhand, and also held the portfolio for parliamentary affairs, higher education, and planning, serving in successive governments headed by ND Tiwari, Vijay Bahuguna, and Harish Rawat.[6][3] In 2014, she suggested that she would be a suitable candidate for Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, to replace the then-Chief Minister, Vijay Bahuguna, but her proposal was not accepted by the INC.[7]

Hridayesh was considered an expert on parliamentary procedure, and was a key strategist for the INC in Uttarakhand politics.[8][9][10]

Electoral history

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Hridayesh's electoral history is:[11]

Year Description
1974–1980 Elected to Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council (1st Term)
1986–1992 Elected to Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council (2nd Term)
1992–1998 Elected to Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council (3rd Term)
1998–2000 Elected to Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council (4th Term)
2000–2002 Member Interim Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly
2002–2007 Elected to Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly (1st Term)
  • Cabinet Minister for Public Works, Parliamentary Affairs,
    State Assets, Information, Science & Technology
2012–2017 Elected to Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly (2nd Term)
  • Cabinet Minister for Finance, Commercial Tax, Stamps and Registration,
    Entertainment Tax, Parliamentary Affairs, Legislative Affairs,
    Election, Census, Language, Protocol
2017 – 2021 Elected to Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly (3rd Term)

References

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  1. ^ "Back to roots: Stranger in own village, Hridayesh counts Haldwani as second home". Hindustan Times. 20 January 2017. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b My Neta
  3. ^ a b "Uttarakhand: Congress leader Indira Hridayesh passes away". The Indian Express. 14 June 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  4. ^ election Info
  5. ^ "Indira Hridayesh will be Opposition leader in Uttarakhand Assembly". The Economic Times. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  6. ^ "Senior Congress leader Indira Hridayesh Dies At 80". NDTV.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  7. ^ "Senior member of Bahuguna Cabinet Indira Hridayesh creates flutter by claiming CM post". News18. 10 January 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  8. ^ Singh, Sanjay. "Indira Hridayesh's death is a loss for Congress in Uttarakhand". The Economic Times. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  9. ^ "Indira Hridayesh, senior Congress leader, passes away after cardiac arrest; Modi, Rahul Gandhi express condolences". Firstpost. 13 June 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  10. ^ "Senior Congress leader Indira Hridayesh passes away". mint. 13 June 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  11. ^ http://ukvidhansabha.uk.gov.in/files/Indira_Hridyesh_life_sketch_1.pdf [bare URL PDF]