Suraj Bhan | |
|---|---|
 Suraj Bhan in 2004 | |
| Chairman of theNational Commission for Scheduled Castes | |
| In office 2004 - 2006 | |
| Succeeded by | Buta Singh |
| 14th Governor of Himachal Pradesh | |
| In office 23 November 2000 – 7 May 2003 | |
| Chief Minister | Prem Kumar Dhumal Virbhadra Singh |
| Preceded by | Vishnu Kant Shastri |
| Succeeded by | Vishnu Sadashiv Kokje |
| 23rd Governor of Uttar Pradesh | |
| In office 20 April 1998 – 23 November 2000 | |
| Chief Minister | Kalyan Singh Ram Prakash Gupta Rajnath Singh |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Shafi Qureshi(Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Vishnu Kant Shastri |
| Governor of Bihar (Additional Charge) | |
| In office 6 October 1999 – 23 November 1999 | |
| Chief Minister | Rabri Devi |
| Preceded by | B.M. Lall(Acting) |
| Succeeded by | V. C. Pande |
| 11th Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha | |
| In office 12 July 1996 – 4 December 1997 | |
| Speaker | P. A. Sangma |
| Preceded by | S. Mallikarjunaiah |
| Succeeded by | P. M. Sayeed |
| 22ndMinister of Agriculture | |
| In office 16 May 1996 – 1 June 1996 | |
| Prime Minister | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| Preceded by | Jagannath Mishra |
| Succeeded by | H. D. Deve Gowda |
| Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha | |
| In office 1996–1998 | |
| Preceded by | Ram Prakash Chaudhary |
| Succeeded by | Aman Kumar Nagra |
| Constituency | Ambala |
| In office 1977–1984 | |
| Preceded by | Ram Prakash Chaudhary |
| Succeeded by | Ram Prakash Chaudhary |
| In office 1967–1971 | |
| Preceded by | Chuni Lal |
| Succeeded by | Ram Prakash Chaudhary |
| Constituency | Ambala |
| Leader of the Opposition, Haryana Legislative Assembly | |
| In office 1989-1990 | |
| Succeeded by | Sampat Singh |
| Revenue Minister (Haryana) | |
| In office 1987-1989 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1928-10-01)1 October 1928 |
| Died | 6 August 2006(2006-08-06) (aged 77) |
| Cause of death | Cardiac arrest |
| Party | Bharatiya Janata Party |
Suraj Bhan (1 October 1928 – 6 August 2006) was an Indian politician who was elected to theLok Sabha, Indian lower house of parliament, for four terms from Ambala. He also served as the Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha from July 1996 to December 1997. He served as governor ofUttar Pradesh,Himachal Pradesh, andBihar.
Bhan was born on 1 October 1928, in Mehlanwali,Yamuna Nagar district ofHaryana and studiedMA andLLB atPunjab University andKurukshetra University.[1]
Suraj Bhan Banswal, started his public life as a volunteer of theRashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.[2]He started his political career with theBharatiya Jana Sangh which eventually became theBharatiya Janata Party and dropped his last name "Banswal" after joining active politics. He represented theAmbala parliamentary constituency ofHaryana in the4th (1967–1970),6th (1977–1979),7th (1979–1984) and the11th Lok Sabhas (1996–1997). In 1987, he was elected to Haryana assembly and served as Revenue Minister inDevi Lal's government between 1987 and 1989. After the BJP broke alliance with Devi Lal's party, he served as Leader of Opposition in the Haryana assembly (1989–1990). He was appointed State President of BJP Haryana Unit in 1984.[3]
In 1996, he was named Agriculture minister in theFirst Vajpayee Ministry after which he served asdeputy speaker of the 11th Lok Sabha, during theUnited Front government (Jul. 1996 to Feb. 1997). He contested 1998 Lok Sabha elections, but lost to AmanKumar Nagra of theBSP. Afterwards, he took over asGovernor of Uttar Pradesh (Apr. 1998 - Nov. 2000),Himachal Pradesh (Nov. 2000 - May 2003), and officiated asGovernor of Bihar (1999).[4]
In 2002 Dr Suraj Bhan also joined the race for the post of Vice-President of the country following re-thinking in the BJP over the candidature of former Rajasthan Chief Minister,Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Certain senior Dalit leaders of the Congress unofficially conveyed thatSonia Gandhi had no objection to Dr Suraj Bhan's candidature.[5]
In February 2004, he was appointed Chairman of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) Commission. He died of cardiac arrest following multiple organ failure on 6 August 2006 in New Delhi, while serving as the SC/ST Commission Chairman. He was aged 77.