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Journalism of Courage
Veteran Socialist leader,Samajwadi Party national vice-president and Rajya Sabha member from Uttar Pradesh Janeshwar Mishra died on Friday at Tez Bahadur Sapru District Hospital in Allahabad. He was 76. He is survived by two daughters.
Fondly called Chhote Lohia for his long association with the Socialist movement and its icon Ram Manohar Lohia,Mishra was the leader of the SP in the Rajya Sabha. Despite bad health,Mishra had led the partys agitation against price rise and corruption in Allahabad on January 19. He was also one of the founding members of the SP at a time Mandal politics was at its height in 1992.
Leaders,including SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav,Amar Singh,Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav,are expected to attend his last rites to be performed at Sangam on Saturday afternoon.
A four-time Lok Sabha member,Mishra was a central minister in the governments headed by Morarji Desai,Chaudhary Charan Singh,V P Singh,Chandra Shekhar,H D Deve Gowda and I K Gujral. He held various portfolios,including Petroleum,Chemicals and Fertilisers and Railways.
Born in Ballia on August 5,1933,Mishra studied law in Allahabad which was then one of the most politically sensitive cities of the country.
The founder vice-president of the SP,Mishra was held in high esteem by the SP chief. Mulayam never took any major decision without taking his consent or at least apprising him of one even if he disapproved it. Be it SPs decision to bail out the Congress in 2008 on the Indo-US nuclear deal or,more recently,accepting Amar Singhs resignation from party posts,Mulayam got moving only after Mishras approval.
The SP chief,as a mark of respect for the departed leader,has called off the ongoing Sefai Mahotsav.
