From soldier to BJP’s 1st elected CM of Uttarakhand: The journey of BC Khanduri

DEHRADUN: Former Uttarakhand chief minister and BJP stalwart Major Gen (retd) Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri passed away at a private hospital here at 11.10 am on Tuesday following a prolonged illness. He was 91. Born on Oct 1, 1934, Khanduri is survived by his wife, Aruna, daughter Ritu Khanduri Bhushan (the current Speaker of Uttarakhand assembly) and son Manish, who contested the Pauri Lok Sabha seat in 2019.

As a mark of respect, Uttarakhand govt announced a three-day state mourning. The funeral will be held with full state honors in Haridwar on Wednesday.

Before entering politics, Khanduri served in the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army from 1954 to 1991. During his illustrious military career, he contributed to the nation’s defense in three historic conflicts – the 1962 Indo-China war, 1965 Indo-Pak war and the 1971 Indo-Pak war.

During the 1971 war, he displayed exceptional leadership and strategic competence as the commander of an Engineer Regiment in the Samba sector of J&K.

Throughout his military tenure, he held several key appointments, including director of management studies at Army Headquarters, commander of an Engineer Brigade at Meerut, and chief engineer in Siliguri region of West Bengal. He also served as deputy and additional military secretary and as additional director general in the Engineer-in-Chief Branch.

In recognition of his distinguished service, govt of India conferred upon him the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) on Jan 26, 1982. He retired as a Major General in 1991.

Khanduri entered public life in 1991 and was elected to Lok Sabha from Pauri seat on a BJP ticket that same year. He went on to represent the constituency multiple times, winning re-elections in 1998, 1999, 2004 and 2014.

As a parliamentarian, he contributed significantly to various standing committees, including finance, defence, home, petroleum and public accounts. Notably, he chaired the parliamentary standing committee on finance from Aug 2004 to March 2007.

In the Union cabinet of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Khanduri earned widespread acclaim for transforming India’s infrastructure. Appointed minister of state (independent charge) for road transport and highways on Nov 7, 2000, he was elevated to cabinet rank on May 24, 2003, serving until May 21, 2004. During this term, he played a pivotal role in accelerating major infrastructure projects, including the Golden Quadrilateral and the National Highway Development Project (NHDP). He briefly held the additional charge of the ministry of urban development in 2003.

Khanduri was instrumental in strengthening BJP grassroots in Uttarakhand, leading the party to form its first elected govt in the state in 2007. Though he was Uttarakhand’s fourth CM -- following Nityanand Swami, B S Koshyari and N D Tiwari -- he was BJP’s first elected CM.

Khanduri served two terms as CM -- March 7, 2007, – June 27, 2009, and Sept 11, 2011 – March 13, 2012.

Following BJP’s loss of all five Lok Sabha seats in 2009, he was replaced by Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’. But he was brought back to the helm months before the 2012 assembly elections. Despite campaigning under the popular slogan “Khanduri Hai Zarori” (Khanduri is necessary), he suffered a personal defeat in Kotdwar seat. BJP secured 31 seats to the Congress’s 32, allowing the latter to form the govt.

During his governance, Khanduri was widely respected for championing anti-corruption initiatives and advancing a robust Lokayukta system in the state.

As the news of Khanduri’s demise disseminated, President Droupadi Murmu described his passing as “extremely heartbreaking”, stating that Khanduri set a benchmark for “honest, simple, transparent, and development-oriented politics.”

Vice President C P Radhakrishnan said the nation had lost a distinguished soldier, able administrator and a statesman of rare integrity, recalling Khanduri’s visionary role in shaping India’s highway infrastructure.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi commended Khanduri’s invaluable contributions to both the armed forces and public life, noting that the former CM worked tirelessly to improve nationwide connectivity.

Union home minister Amit Shah termed his demise an “irreparable loss” for the BJP family and Uttarakhand, highlighting that Khanduri lived by the principle of “nation first”.

Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami stated, “Khanduri ji presented an unparalleled example of national service, discipline and dedication... By taking numerous important decisions in the interest of the state, he provided a new direction to development.”

Former CM Harish Rawat expressed deep grief in a condolence message: “Khanduri ji was a personality of his own kind. As brilliant as he was as a soldier, he was equally remarkable as a person... Every tenure of his will be remembered for one good deed or another. He was a person without enemies.”

Remembering her father, Uttarakhand assembly speaker Ritu Khanduri Bhushan shared a poignant note: “I have not merely lost my father — I have bid farewell to the greatest pillar of my life, my guide and the personality in whose shadow I understood the meaning of duty, discipline, and service. The life of Major General (Retd.) Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri ji was not the story of a single individual, but a living saga of complete dedication to the nation. His life’s journey traversed the battlefields of the Indian Army to the highest platforms of democracy... yet in every role, his identity remained singular: Nation first.”