B C Khanduri: Army veteran who helped shape BJP’s rise in Uttarakhand, became CM, dies at 91

The nephew of former Uttar Pradesh CM and Lok Dal leader Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna, Khanduri entered politics in 1991 as a BJP candidate, when he won from the Garhwal Lok Sabha. He went on to win the seat four more times — in 1998, 1999, 2004 and 2014. However, he lost the seat to former Congress leader and current BJP minister Satpal Maharaj in 1996 and 2009.

Between September 2014 and August 2018, Khanduri chaired the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence and was removed from the post after committee reports during his tenure criticised the country’s defence preparedness.

His son, Manish Khanduri, joined the Congress in 2019 before returning to the BJP in 2024, while his daughter, Ritu Khanduri Bhushan, is Speaker of the Uttarakhand Assembly.

Khanduri held a BSc degree and a BE in Civil Engineering. He studied at Allahabad University (1951-1953), the College of Military Engineering, Pune (1957-1959), the Institute of Engineers in New Delhi, the Institute of Defence Management in Secunderabad (1973-1974), and the Indian Institute of Public Administration in New Delhi (1976).

The retired Major General first served as Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Road Transport and Highways in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government before being elevated to the rank of a Cabinet minister. He is credited with advancing the Golden Quadrilateral project and the National Highways Development Programme.

One of the BJP’s earliest and tallest leaders from the Garhwal region, Khanduri drew influence from his defence background in a state with a strong military tradition and also his Brahmin identity.

In 2007, after the BJP returned to power in Uttarakhand’s second Assembly elections, Khanduri resigned as MP to become Chief Minister. His tenure was marked by repeated internal conflicts, particularly with senior BJP leader Bhagat Singh Koshiyari. Within the first 10 months of his tenure, he faced threats of removal on three occasions, though the party leadership continued to back him.

Nearly two years later, after a series of electoral setbacks culminating in the BJP losing all five Lok Sabha seats in Uttarakhand in 2009, Khanduri was replaced by Ramesh Pokhriyal “Nishank”. Nishank, then Health Minister in Khanduri’s Cabinet and seen to be his close confidant, was seen as instrumental in preventing Khanduri’s earlier ouster.

Ahead of the 2012 Assembly elections, the BJP reinstated Khanduri amid the slogan “Khanduri hai zaruri”. Nishank’s government had come under allegations of corruption, prompting the party to bring Khanduri back before the polls. Around the same time, senior BJP leader and retired Lt General T P S Rawat floated the Uttarakhand Raksha Morcha, citing corruption and threatening to dent the BJP’s ex-servicemen support base.

Although Rawat later returned to the party, Khanduri himself lost the Kotdwar seat to Congress leader Surendra Singh Negi. The BJP won 31 seats against the Congress’s 32, allowing the latter to form the government with support from the BSP and Independents.

During his tenure as Chief Minister, Khanduri was seen as relying heavily on his secretary Prabhat Singh Sarangi, who was accused by opponents of exercising undue influence over policy decisions. Opposition leaders frequently alleged that Khanduri had become inaccessible to the public. Sarangi’s tenure drew sustained criticism, with then Leader of Opposition Harak Rawat once staging a protest using the musical instrument sarangi to mock his influence. After Nishank took over as Chief Minister, Sarangi was sent back to his parent Uttar Pradesh cadre within 48 hours.

Journalist and political analyst SMA Kazmi said Khanduri came to symbolise discipline and integrity for many in Uttarakhand. “He rode on the wave of Ram Mandir politics when the BJP had no tall leaders in Garhwal. He was also part of the first political family of Garhwal and cousin of former Congress CM Vijay Bahuguna. He later grew close to BJP leaders Vajpayee and L K Advani,” he added.

Kazmi added that Khanduri’s influence declined after 2014, and his son joining the Congress hurt his image within the BJP. According to him, the party leadership increasingly favoured leaders such as Trivendra Singh Rawat, Tirath Singh Rawat, and Anil Baluni.