Jagmohan

Who is Jagmohan?

Jagmohan Malhotra, known by the mononym Jagmohan, is a former Indian politician and civil servant. Formerly a loyalist of the Nehru–Gandhi family associated with the Indian National Congress, later in his career he switched allegiance to the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Jagmohan first gained notoriety during his stint as vice-chairman of the Delhi Development Authority in the mid 1970s. During this time he grew close to Sanjay Gandhi, who began to wield increasing clout in the functioning of his mother Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's government. During the Emergency, Sanjay Gandhi entrusted Jagmohan with the "beautification" of Delhi, a task that involved large-scale demolition of slums. These beautification drives disproportionately affected Muslims, traditionally Congress-party voters, whose disenchantment contributed to Indira Gandhi's massive defeat in the 1977 general election. Despite this Jagmohan, already a Padma Shri since 1971, was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1977.

In 1982, as Delhi hosted the Asian Games, Jagmohan served his second term as the city's Lieutenant Governor. The games were a success and he was credited for his capable administration of the city at the time.