Raghunandan Lal Bhatia (3 July 1920 – 14 May 2021) was an Indian politician. He was the

Governor of Kerala The governor of Kerala is the constitutional head of state of the southern Indian state of Kerala. The governor is appointed by the President of India, and holds office at the President's pleasure. The governor is ''de jure'' head of the govern ...

from 23 June 2004 to 10 July 2008, and was the

Governor of Bihar The governor of Bihar is the nominal head of the Indian state of Bihar. The governor is appointed by the president of India. Arif Mohammad Khan is the current governor of Bihar. Former President Zakir Husain and Ram Nath Kovind were two such ...

from 10 July 2008 to 28 June 2009. He signed the Border Peace and Tranquility Agreement with China on behalf of the

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area; the most populous country since 2023; and, since its independence in 1947, the world's most populous democracy. Bounded by ...

Biography

Bhatia was born to Arooramal Bhatia and Lal Devi Bhatia, in

Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

on 3 July 1920. He graduated from the

University of the Punjab The University of the Punjab (UoP) is a public university, public research university in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan. Founded in 1882, its international influence has made it one of the most prestigious universities in South As ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

, and received an LLB. After this, he served as a member of the governing body of

for nine years. Bhatia was first elected to the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...

in 1972, from the

Amritsar Lok Sabha constituency Amritsar Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 13 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in the Indian state of Punjab, represented since 2017 by Gurjeet Singh Aujla of the Congress party. The Minister of Finance of India (2014–2019), Arun ...

. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha from the same constituency at the 1980, 1985, 1992, 1996 and 1999 elections as a member 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 ...

. During this time, he held several other posts as well. He was a member of the executive committee of Congress parliamentary party from 1975 to 1977, the Minister of State for External Affairs in the Government of India from July 1992 until 1993, the Chairman of the Committee of petitions in Lok Sabha in 1983, the President of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee 1982 through 1984, the General Secretary of AICC in 1991, and also a member of the select committee constituted in 1992 for the amendment of the constitution. During his time in the

, Bhatia represented India as a delegate to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

, and participated as a delegate in the 7th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement held in Delhi, in March 1983, the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

in November 1983, the Sixth

SAARC The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional intergovernmental organization and geopolitical union of states in South Asia. Its member states are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, ...

summit in Colombo in 1991, and the 5th meeting of coordinating countries of the action programme for economic cooperation of non-aligned countries held in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

in 1986. Bhatia was also a member of the India Council for Cultural Relations from 1983 to 1984. He was chairman of the India Bulgaria Friendship Society from 1983 to 1990, and the Indo-GDR Friendship Association 1983 to 1990. He was also co-chairman of the All India Peace & Solidarity organization from 1981 to 1983, and the Vice President of Friends of Soviet Union from 1983 to 1984. Following the death of Sikander Bakht in 2004, Bhatia became the

. After spending four years in that post, Bhatia was appointed as the

on 26 June 2008, switching posts with Bihar Governor R. S. Gavai. He was sworn in on 10 July 2008. He left office in 2009, and led a private life. Bhatia died from COVID-19 in 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhatia, R. L. Governors of Kerala Politicians from Amritsar Governors of Bihar 1920 births 2021 deaths India MPs 1971–1977 India MPs 1980–1984 India MPs 1984–1989 India MPs 1991–1996 India MPs 1996–1997 India MPs 1999–2004 Lok Sabha members from Punjab, India Indian National Congress politicians from Punjab, India University of the Punjab alumni Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in India Indian men centenarians Presidents of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee