Raj Narain

Who was Raj Narain?

Lokbandhu Raj Narain was an Indian politician who, as a candidate of Janata Party for the Lok Sabha in 1977, ran for office in Rae Bareli constituency and defeated Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India. Raj Narain, also called 'Lok Bandhu', had defeated former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in her own pocket borough soon after Emergency, had also played an active role in 1942 Quit India Movement. He was the Minister of Health during Morarji Desai's ministry and a commemorative stamp was released in his honor by the former Vice President of India, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Raj Narain was the only politician who defeated Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India, in the 1977 Lok Sabha elections in Rai Bareli. Raj Narain accused Indira Gandhi of election fraud and filed an election petition against her. The Allahabad High Court, on 12 June 1975, upheld the accusations and set aside the election of Indira Gandhi and also disqualified her from running in the Lok Sabha elections for next 6 years. The present Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav unveiled a statue in his memory at Chandrabhanu Gupta Agriculture college which is close to the state capital Lucknow.