Gulzarilal Nanda was an Indian politician and economist who specialised in labour issues.
25 Facts About Gulzarilal Nanda
2.
Gulzarilal Nanda was the Interim Prime Minister of India for two 13-day tenures following the deaths of Jawaharlal Nehru in 1964 and Lal Bahadur Shastri in 1966 respectively.
3.
Gulzarilal Nanda was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in 1997.
4.
Gulzarilal Nanda received his education in Lahore, Amritsar, Agra, and Allahabad.
5.
Gulzarilal Nanda met Mahatma Gandhi in 1921, where he settled in Gujarat on his request.
6.
Gulzarilal Nanda worked as a research scholar on labour problems at Allahabad University, and became a professor of economics at National College in Bombay in 1921.
7.
Gulzarilal Nanda was imprisoned for Satyagraha in 1932, and again from 1942 to 1944.
8.
Gulzarilal Nanda married Lakshmi, with whom he had two sons and a daughter.
9.
Gulzarilal Nanda was elected to the Lok Sabha in the 1957 elections, and was appointed Union Minister for Labour, Employment and Planning, and later, as Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.
10.
Gulzarilal Nanda visited the Federal Republic of Germany, Yugoslavia, and Austria in 1959.
11.
Gulzarilal Nanda was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in the 1962 elections from the Sabarkantha constituency in Gujarat.
12.
Gulzarilal Nanda initiated the Congress Forum for Socialist Action in 1962.
13.
Gulzarilal Nanda was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in the 1967 and 1971 elections from the Kaithal in Haryana.
14.
Gulzarilal Nanda was the Interim Prime Minister of India twice for thirteen days each: the first time after the death of first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in 1964, and the second time after the death of second Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri in 1966.
15.
Gulzarilal Nanda was the Home Minister of India during both these periods, and this is the reason why he was chosen as Prime Minister.
16.
Gulzarilal Nanda died on 15 January 1998 at the age of 99; from 25 November 1997 when former Malawian President Hastings Banda died, until his own death Gulzarilal Nanda was the oldest living former State Leader.
17.
At his death, Gulzarilal Nanda was the last surviving member of the second and third Nehru cabinets and the last living state leader to have been born in the 19th century.
18.
Gulzarilal Nanda lived a very simple life, with no personal property at the time of his death.
19.
Gulzarilal Nanda never allowed politics to influence his family life.
20.
Gulzarilal Nanda once engaged his government provided driver for a car that was used by his family.
21.
Gulzarilal Nanda never allowed his family to use his official vehicle.
22.
Gulzarilal Nanda once got angry with his staff when he learned that his grandson, Tejas used his office paper and drew a picture.
23.
Gulzarilal Nanda immediately purchased paper from market and gave his grandson to draw on it.
24.
Gulzarilal Nanda was concerned about rising corruption in the country and suggested to decrease wasteful consumption by officials and people in general.
25.
Gulzarilal Nanda had opposed Indira Gandhi's Emergency, as he felt that the sacrifices to bring democracy to India became meaningless due to the tyranny.