George Mathew Fernandes was an Indian politician, trade unionist, journalist, agriculturist and member of the Rajya Sabha from Bihar. He was the Defense Minister in the cabinet of Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Wiki/Biography
George Fernandes was born on 3 June 1930 (age 88 years at death) in Mangalore, British India. He was educated in a government school and a church school in Mangalore. While in 5th class, he joined St. Aloysius College, Mangalore. He left secondary school. In 1946, at the age of 16, George was sent to St. Peter’s Seminary, Bangalore, to continue his family’s tradition of training as a Roman Catholic priest. However, the biased culture in the church led to depression and despair and he left the training within three years. Since then, he worked in various hotels, transportation industry and restaurants to make ends meet.
In 1949, at the age of 19, George moved to Mumbai in search of a job. He worked hard for several days until he was offered a job as a proofreader for a newspaper. His interest in journalism led him to become the editor of the Konkani monthly newspaper Konkani Yuvak in 1949. He was also the editor of the English monthly edition, The Other Side. Apart from being the editor, George was also the president of the Hindi monthly edition Pratipaksha.
George Fernandes in his early days
Between the 1950s–1960s, George was part of a socialist trade union that was responsible for fighting for the rights of small-scale industry workers and initiating various strikes throughout Bombay. Between 1961 and 1968, he advocated for the rights of exploited workers while being a member of the Bombay Municipal Corporation. His immense organizational skills made him the most powerful union leader. His involvement in issues related to people’s welfare earned him respect and admiration. In 1967, George defeated veteran Congress leader SK Patil from the South Bombay constituency by 48.5% of the votes and became a national celebrity overnight. George was called “George the Giantkiller” because his victory ended SK Patil’s political career.
In 1974, while President of the All India Railwaymen’s Federation, George initiated a railway strike to end the workers’ decades-old grievances. More than 15 lakh workers were part of the strike and thousands of them were arrested.
George Fernandes during the railway strike in 1974
In 1975, George challenged the emergency imposed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and went underground disguising himself as a Sikh man with a turban and beard. On 10 June 1976, George was arrested along with others and accused of smuggling dynamite to blow up railway tracks and government buildings in the Baroda dynamite case. In 1977, George contested the Lok Sabha elections from jail and won a landslide victory from the Muzaffarpur constituency in Bihar.
George Fernandes arrested during emergency
George Fernandes during emergency
Family, Wife and Caste
George was born in a Mangalorean Catholic family to John Joseph Fernandes (father) and Alice Martha Fernandes (mother). He was the eldest of six children. He had five brothers namely Michael Fernandes (trade union leader), Aloysius Fernandes, Paul Fernandes, Lawrence Fernandes (socialist political leader) and Richard Fernandes.
George, with his brothers and parents in 1975
George Fernandes’ brother, Michael Fernandes
While returning from Calcutta to Delhi in 1971, George met Leela Kabir, daughter of former Union Minister Humayun Kabir. Both of them fell in love with each other. After dating for a long time, they tied the knot on 21 July 1971. The couple had a son, Sean Fernandes, an investment banker in New York.
George and Leela
George Fernandes’ son, daughter-in-law and grandson
In the mid-1980s, complications arose between George and Lila and they separated. According to reports, after his separation from Leela, George was often seen with former Samata Party president Jaya Jaitley.
George Fernandes with Jaya Jaitley
However, after the news that George is suffering from Alzheimer’s, Leela returns to his life to give him strength during difficult times.
George Fernandes and Leela
George and Lila with their grandson Ken
livelihood
George was General Secretary of the United Socialist Party from 1969-1973. He was president and chairman of the All India Railwaymen’s Federation from 1973–77. After the Emergency in 1977, the Janata Party led by Morarji Desai came to power and George became a senior minister of the party. He became the Union Industry Minister and said that IBM and Coca-Cola violated investment procedures, forcing them to leave India. When the Janata Party came to power again in 1989, he became the Railway Minister. In 1994, George founded the Samata Party.
George Fernandes with Morarji Desai and Biju Patnaik in 1977
Between 1998 and 2004, George was appointed as the Defense Minister in the second and third National Democratic Alliance governments. During his tenure as Defense Minister, he played an important role in strengthening India during the Kargil War against Pakistan and also urged India to conduct nuclear tests in Pokhran. In 1999, he became the leader of the Janata Dal-United Parliamentary Party in the Lok Sabha.
George Fernandes, US Secretary of Defense, with Donald Rumsfeld
In March 2001, George was forced to resign as Defense Minister after he was named in Mathew Samuel’s sting operation, the Tehelka scandal. However, within a few months, he was again appointed as the Defense Minister by Atal Bihari Vajpayee. George denied in front of the media the allegations of corruption against him in the arms purchase scam.
In 2004, George won the Lok Sabha elections for the ninth time. In the 2009 general elections, George was denied the Janata Dal (United) ticket, after which he could not contest the elections. He served as the convenor and was an effective spokesperson of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. He was a close friend of the Dalai Lama.
Dalai Lama wishes George Fernandes on his 87th birthday
Apart from being an active member in politics, George also wrote various books on politics such as “What Else the Socialists (1972),” “The Kashmir Problem,” “Railway Strike (1974),” “Dignity for All: Essays in Socialism and Democracy (1991),” and an autobiography titled ”George Fernandes Speaks” (1991).
george fernandes book
controversies
- In 1997, George organized a controversial public conference of pro-LTTE elements in New Delhi. He was a supporter of The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)’s struggle for a separate state in northern Sri Lanka.
- George then became the focus of the media when a sting operation was conducted by journalist-Matthew Samuel. According to reports, Samuel had offered bribe to then Bharatiya Janata Party president Bangaru Laxman, senior Indian Army officer and Samata Party general secretary Jaya Jaitley. After the said sting operation, George was forced to resign from the post of Defense Minister.
- As president of the Socialist Party of India, US diplomatic cables claimed that George was willing to take money from the CIA when the French government refused to give money to organize underground sabotage activities.
- In 2002, George was found guilty in the coffin scam and was accused of purchasing 500 poor quality aluminum coffins from the United States to carry the bodies of soldiers killed after the Kargil war, at 13 times the actual price. was excessive.
- On 10 October 2006, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed an FIR against George, Jaya Jaitley and Admiral Sushil Kumar (former Navy Chief) for illegally purchasing ₹7 billion ($110 million) Barak 1 systems from Israel in 2000. George claimed that former Indian President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam had approved the missile deal.
net worth
In 2009, George’s net worth was approximately ₹9.5 crore.
Death
George Fernandes was suffering from Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. In 2010, on the request of his wife Leela Kabir, he underwent treatment at Baba Ramdev’s ashram in Haridwar. Her brothers were granted visitation rights by the Delhi High Court and later the Supreme Court of India allowed Jaya Jaitley to meet them. George made his last public appearance nearly nine years ago as he suffered from Alzheimer’s.
The Dalai Lama meets George Fernandez during George’s final days
George Fernandes died on 29 January 2019 in New Delhi.
fact
- George won nine Lok Sabha elections from 1967 to 2004.
- His father wanted him to become a lawyer.
- At St. Peter’s Seminary, he witnessed various discriminations; One of which was that church rectors ate better food and sat at higher tables than seminarians. All this made him disappointed and sad.
- He described his days of struggle in Bombay thus, “When I came to Bombay, I used to sleep on the benches of Chowpatty Sands. Policemen used to come in the middle of the night and wake me up and ask me to move forward.
- George joined the trade union movement in his home town Mangalore and P.D.Mello became his mentor.
- He was fluent in ten languages which included Konkani, Tulu, Kannada, English, Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Malayalam and Latin.
- On 4 August 2009, he became a member of the Rajya Sabha after being denied the Janata Dal (United) ticket to contest the Lok Sabha elections.
- At his 80th birthday celebration, he couldn’t even recognize his family members due to Alzheimer’s disease.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbQ1vItCZ-w
- George was a member of Amnesty International, People’s Union for Civil Liberties and the Press Council of India.
- In one of his interviews, George told about his childhood moments, life goals, career achievements and many other things.
- His favorite actresses were Madhu Bala, Nargis and Suraiya Jamal Shaikh.
- He loved listening to western and classical music.
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn