Bansi Lal
Bansi Lal Legha (26 August 1927 – 28 March 2006) was an Indian independence activist, senior Congress leader, Chief Minister of Haryana, former Defence Minister of India, and the architect of modern Haryana. Bansi Lal was part of the famous Lal trio of Haryana which also included 'Tau' Devi Lal and Bhajan Lal, that form the major Political families of Haryana.
Bansi Lal Legha | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Defence | |
| In office 21 December 1975 – 24 March 1977 | |
| Prime Minister | Indira Gandhi |
| Preceded by | Indira Gandhi |
| Succeeded by | Jagjivan Ram |
| Minister of Railways | |
| In office 31 December 1984 – 4 June 1986 | |
| Prime Minister | Rajiv Gandhi |
| Preceded by | A. B. A. Ghani Khan Choudhury |
| Succeeded by | Mohsina Kidwai |
| 3rd Chief Minister of Haryana | |
| In office 22 May 1968 – 30 November 1975 | |
| Preceded by | President's rule |
| Succeeded by | Banarsi Das Gupta |
| In office 5 June 1986 – 19 June 1987 | |
| Preceded by | Bhajan Lal |
| Succeeded by | Chaudhary Devi Lal |
| In office 11 May 1996 – 23 July 1999 | |
| Preceded by | Bhajan Lal |
| Succeeded by | Om Prakash Chautala |
| Member of the Indian Parliament for Bhiwani | |
| In office 1980–1987 | |
| Preceded by | Chandrawati |
| Succeeded by | Chaudhary Ram Narain Singh |
| In office 1989–1991 | |
| Preceded by | Chaudhary Ram Narain Singh |
| Succeeded by | Jangbir Singh |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 August 1927 Golagarh, Punjab, British India |
| Died | 28 March 2006 (aged 78) New Delhi, India |
Lal was elected to the Haryana State Assembly seven times, the first time in 1967 from Tosham. He served three separate terms as Chief Minister of Haryana: 1968–75, 1986–87, and 1996–99. Bansi Lal was considered a close confidante of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her son Sanjay Gandhi during the Emergency era of 1975-1977.
He served as the Defence Minister of India from December 1975 to March 1977, and had a brief stint as a Minister without Portfolio in the Union government in 1975. He also held the Railways and Transport portfolios.
He set up Haryana Vikas Party after parting ways with the Indian National Congress in 1996. He returned to Congress in 2004, and helped the Congress to win the 2005 Assembly elections.