Indira Hridayesh (24 March 1941 – 13 June 2021) was an Indian politician, from the state of

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...

. She was a member of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

party. Hridayesh was elected to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council for four terms, from 1974 to 2000. She was elected to the Uttarakahand Legislative Assembly in 2002, 2012, and 2017, and between 2002 and 2017, was the State Finance Minister for Uttarakhand. From 2017 onward, she was the leader of the Opposition for the

Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly The Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, also known as the Uttarakhand Vidhan Sabha, is a unicameral governing and law making body of Uttarakhand, one of the 28 states of India. It is seated at Dehradun, the winter capital, and Bhararisain, the summ ...

Biography

Hridayesh was born on 24 March 1941, either in

Allahabad Allahabad (), officially known as Prayagraj, also known as Ilahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi (Benares). It is the administrat ...

or in Pilbhit, in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

, according to sources. Her family was from Dasauli, in Uttar Pradesh. She had a master's degree and a doctorate.My Neta
/ref> She had three sons. She was diagnosed with COVID-19, and underwent cardiac surgery in 2021. She died on 13 June 2021, of

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and possib ...

Career

Hridayesh entered active politics in the mid-1970s, as part of the

(INC) party. She won her first election in 1974, to the upper house of the state of

's bicameral legislature, i.e. the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council. She won second, third and fourth terms to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council from 1986-1992, 1992-1998, and 1998-2000. Hridayesh represented Haldwani constituency, which was in undivided Uttar Pradesh. In 2000, after Uttar Pradesh was divided into smaller states, she became a member of the Interim Uttarakahand Legislative Assembly for the new state of Uttarakahand. She won three more terms to the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, from 2002-2007, 2012-2017, and 2017-2021. During her last term, she was

leader of the opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

for the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly. From 2012 to 2017, she was the Minister of Finance for Uttarakhand, and also held the portfolio for parliamentary affairs, higher education, and planning, serving in successive governments headed by

ND Tiwari Narayan Datt Tiwari (18 October 1925 – 18 October 2018) was an Indian politician who served as the 9th Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and 3rd Chief Minister of Uttarakhand from 2002 to 2007. He was first Indian Chief Minister who served for ...

Vijay Bahuguna Vijay Bahuguna (born 28 February 1947) is an Indian politician who served as the 6th Chief Minister of Uttarakhand. He is the eldest son of Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna, an independence activist and politician, and also a former Chief Minister of Ut ...

, and Harish Rawat. In 2014, she suggested that she would be a suitable candidate for Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, to replace the then-Chief Minister,

, but her proposal was not accepted by the INC. Hridayesh was considered an expert on parliamentary procedure, and was a key strategist for the INC in Uttarakahand politics.

Electoral history

Hridayesh's electoral history is:http://ukvidhansabha.uk.gov.in/files/Indira_Hridyesh_life_sketch_1.pdf

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hridayesh, Indira 1941 births 2021 deaths People from Ayodhya Members of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council Women members of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly Indian National Congress politicians from Uttarakhand Leaders of the Opposition in Uttarakhand Finance Ministers of Uttarakhand 21st-century Indian women politicians 21st-century Indian politicians Uttarakhand MLAs 2000–2002 Uttarakhand MLAs 2002–2007 Uttarakhand MLAs 2012–2017 Uttarakhand MLAs 2017–2022 Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in India