Arun Kumar Nehru (24 April 1944 – 25 July 2013) was an Indian politician and columnist. He was member of the
9th Lok Sabha from
Bilhaur as a
Janata Dal
Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...
leader. Earlier, he was member of the
7th and
8th Lok Sabhas from
Rae Bareli on an
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
ticket.
In his political career, Nehru served in various ministerial positions, including serving as the
Minister of State
Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...
for
Home Affairs from September 1985 to October 1986.
A member of the
Nehru–Gandhi family, Nehru was noted in the media to be the second most powerful person in the
Indian government
The Government of India (ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of 36 states and union territor ...
during his tenure as Minister of State for Home Affairs, after his cousin
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi (20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian statesman and pilot who served as the prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the Assassination of Indira Gandhi, assassination of his mother, then–prime ...
, who was then
Prime Minister of India
The prime minister of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen Union Council of Ministers, Council of Ministers, despite the president of ...
. Nehru was also a member of the
V. P. Singh cabinet.
Early life and background
Arun Nehru was born on 24 April 1944.
His father was Anand Kumar Nehru, a member of the
Nehru-Gandhi family.
He studied at
La Martinière Boys College,
Lucknow
Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...
, and
Lucknow Christian College.
Career
He worked as a businessman for 17 years before entering into politics. He was president of the paint firm
Jenson and Nicholson at the time when
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and stateswoman who served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India from 1966 to 1977 and again from 1980 un ...
persuaded him to change career.
[ However, he rose to prominence after Sanjay Gandhi's death. The business community regarded him as a decisive person and even termed him as "one-window clearance". When his cousin ]Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi (20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian statesman and pilot who served as the prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the Assassination of Indira Gandhi, assassination of his mother, then–prime ...
forayed into politics in 1981, Nehru became his key advisor. Following Indira Gandhi's assassination in 1984, Nehru played a key role in ensuring Rajiv Gandhi's appointment as Prime Minister by persuading then-President of India
The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...
, Zail Singh, to appoint Rajiv Gandhi as Prime Minister before he was even elected as the party leader. Nehru also contributed to development of the Special Protection Group.
As a representative of the Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
(INC), Nehru was a Member of Parliament in the 7th Lok Sabha (1980–84) and 8th Lok Sabha (1984-89) from Rae Bareli. He was Union Minister of State for Energy (December 1984—September 1985,) and for Home Affairs (September 1985—October 1986) in 10th ministry of India. Later, he left the INC for Janata Dal
Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...
and was elected to the 9th Lok Sabha from Bilhaur in 1989, where he was Union Minister for Commerce and Tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...
(December–November 1990).[ Nehru was also noted in the media to be one of the most powerful members of the V.P. Singh government and also helped form Singh's government.]
He was also a member of various committees - Railway Convention Committee (1980–84), Consultative Committee, External Affairs and Science and Technology, 7th Lok Sabha; Member, Consultative Committee, External Affairs (1987–89).[
]
Controversies
Role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots
As originally reported by The Caravan
''The Caravan'' is an Indian English-language, long-form narrative journalism magazine covering politics and culture. It was initially launched in 1940 by Vishwa Nath, becoming a prominent monthly magazine before ceasing publication in 1988. T ...
Magazine, Arun Nehru reportedly played a pivotal role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.[The 1984 Massacre, How Senior Leaders From The Congress Sanctioned The Organised Violence That Followed Indira Gandhi’s Death, The Caravan (October 29, 2015)](_blank)
/ref> The riots broke out after the Assassination of Indira Gandhi
Prime Minister of India, Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated at 9:30 AM on 31 October 1984 at her 7 RCR, residence in Safdarjung Road, New Delhi. She was killed by her bodyguards, Satwant Singh and Beant Singh (assassin), Be ...
. According to then petroleum secretary Avtar Singh Gill, Rajiv Gandhi 's "errand boy", Lalit Suri informed him at the eve of the massacre that Arun Nehru gave "clearance" for the killings in Delhi. His strategy was to "catch Sikh youth, fling a tyre over their heads, douse them with kerosene and set them on fire." He further retorted, "This will calm the anger of the Hindus".
Czech pistol case
During his tenure as Minister of State in the Home Ministry from 1985–86, he was allegedly involved in the Czech pistol case, where a deal with the Czechoslovakian firm Merkuria Foreign Trade Corp had resulted in a loss of around . A 20-year investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) led to submission of a report in 2007. This found no incriminating evidence. The trial court, however, rejected the CBI report and found Nehru's involvement enough to continue the proceedings. In March 2013, the Supreme Court
In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
stay
Stay may refer to:
Places
* Stay, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the US
Law
* Stay of execution, a ruling to temporarily suspend the enforcement of a court judgment
* Stay of proceedings, a ruling halting further legal process in a tr ...
ed those proceedings, based on the report.[
]
Personal life
Nehru married Subhadra Nehru in 1967, and they had two daughters, Radhika and Avantika. He has 3 grandsons. Akhil Madan, Yash Madan and Vickram Tikkoo. He died on 25 July 2013 in Gurgaon
Gurgaon (), officially named Gurugram (), is a satellite city of Delhi and administrative headquarters of Gurgaon district, located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nehru, Arun
1944 births
2013 deaths
Journalists from Uttar Pradesh
Nehru–Gandhi family
Politicians from Lucknow
India MPs 1980–1984
India MPs 1984–1989
India MPs 1989–1991
Indian National Congress politicians from Uttar Pradesh
Janata Dal politicians
Lok Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh
People from Kanpur
Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Uttar Pradesh
Commerce and industry ministers of India
1984 anti-Sikh riots