P.A. Sangma, former Lok Sabha Speaker, passes away
P A Sangma with his daughter Agatha in 2014.
Purno Agitok Sangma, a politician from the Northeast, died of a heart attack here on Friday at the age of 68.
The Lok Sabha, of which he was Speaker two decades ago, was adjourned
for the day. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan made the announcement of his death
and said she learnt from the leader, who used to run the House with a
smile as its presiding officer from 1996 to 1998. He was elected to the
Lower House nine times. Mr. Sangma, who was born in 1947 at Chapahati in
West Garo Hills district of Meghalaya, earned an MA in International
Relations from Dibrugarh University in Assam and studied law.
The first big political break for Purno Agitok Sangma came when he
became general secretary of the Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee in
1975. He became Minister of State for Commerce and Civil Supplies in the
Rajiv Gandhi government in the 1980s.
From 1988 to 1990, he served as Meghalaya Chief Minister. He served as a
Minister of State for Coal (independent charge) in the Narasimha Rao
government in the 1990s.
Mr. Sangma broke away from the Congress, along with Sharad Pawar and
Tariq Anwar, in 1999, raising the banner of revolt against Sonia
Gandhi’s leadership. They founded the Nationalist Congress Party.
He was expelled from the party in 2012 when he refused to accept its
decision to back out of the election for President of India.
He took on Pranab Mukherjee, supported by the BJP and some other
parties. After he lost, he filed a petition against the election of Mr.
Mukherjee.
In 2013, Mr. Sangma founded the National People’s Party. Known for his
affable nature, Mr. Sangma was considered by many as the tallest
north-eastern leader in terms of national stature.
His daughter, Agatha Sangma, was the youngest Minister in the previous UPA government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: “Shri PA Sangma’s tenure as Lok
Sabha Speaker is unforgettable. His down to earth personality and
affable nature endeared him to many.” The twitter handle Officeof RG
tweeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s tribute to Mr. Sangma. “Deepest
condolences on the passing away of veteran leader and former LS Speaker
Shri PA Sangma. His demise is a great loss to the nation.”
P A Sangma: From tending cattle for food to minding the Lok Sabha
Sangma, who had six
siblings, was born on September 1, 1947 in Chapahati, a village on the
border with Bangladesh, about 340 km from Shillong. He would often say
that had it not been for Father Giovanni Battista Busolin, an Italian
Salesian running a school and a church in Garo Hills, he would not have
become what he did.
Once he returned to school, there was no looking back. He did his BA from St Anthony’s College, Shillong, before shifting to Dibrugarh in Assam, where he taught in Don Bosco High School while pursuing MA in international politics from Dibrugarh University. At night, he would attend law college.
Briefly a lawyer and a journalist, Sangma was eventually drawn to politics, with the Congress appointing him vice-president of the Youth Congress in 1973. Four years later, he was elected to Lok Sabha from Tura, a constituency which he continued to represent almost continuously, except in the ninth Lok Sabha, which lasted about 13 months.
First appointed a deputy minister for industries by Indira Gandhi in 1980, Sangma remained an MoS for over 12 years, serving in different ministries like Commerce, Supply, Home and Labour, until he was made a cabinet minister for I&B in the Narasimha Rao government in 1995-96.
His greatest moment arrived on May 23, 1996 when Sangma, just 49 at the time, was elected Lok Sabha Speaker. This marked many firsts — of being unanimously elected Speaker, of being the first Speaker from the Opposition, the first from a Scheduled Tribe as well as the first Christian. He was also the first tribal to become a cabinet minister at the Centre in 1995.
Uncompromising when it came to safeguarding the fundamentals of national interests, his tenure as labour minister saw a sharp decline in industrial strikes and lock-outs in the country.
Known for his photographic memory, meticulous homework and complete mastery of subjects at hand, Sangma always had total control over the House, ensuring that rules were strictly observed even in the midst of stormy debates. His ability to pick up languages to communicate with members from different states remains inimitable.
Sangma came from a matrilineal society, and his stint as Speaker saw the formation of a Standing Joint Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women as well as a Joint Parliamentary Committee for considering the Constitution (81st Amendment) Bill, 1996 that sought to provide 33 per cent reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies.
But Sangma faced controversies later in his political career, especially when he quit the Congress along with Sharad Pawar and Tariq Anwar over party president Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin, and formed the NCP in 1999. He did not get along well with Pawar and left the NCP in 2004 for the Trinamool Congress, from which he was elected to Lok Sabha that year. Two years later, he rejoined the NCP and returned to state politics, getting elected as an MLA in 2008.
Four years later, he stood as a candidate for the President’s office in June 2012, which created another rift between him and Pawar, prompting him to resign once more. Sangma lost the election, despite the Opposition BJP, AIADMK and BJD extending support. In 2013, he launched the National People’s Party (NPP) and returned to Lok Sabha in 2014, attending it regularly — even the day before he died.
While campaigning for elections, Sangma would often crack jokes and tell life stories instead of hitting out at opponents. He would stop for tea at a roadside stall, inquiring about the crop. Sometimes he would even take part in a village football match.
The last time he delivered a lecture was at the end of an inter-college debate organised by Sonapur College on the outskirts of Guwahati on January 28, 2016. “The voice of the Northeast is not sufficiently heard in Parliament, in Delhi and across the country. We have to raise our voice to be heard properly. We need fearless public speakers like Hem Barua, Dinesh Goswami and G G Swell. Those were the kind of leaders and public representatives we had in the past who spoke fearlessly, loudly and clearly. We have to produce such leaders, and in more numbers,” he said.
His name was Purno, which in most languages means complete, total. Sangma indeed lived a purno life.
Once he returned to school, there was no looking back. He did his BA from St Anthony’s College, Shillong, before shifting to Dibrugarh in Assam, where he taught in Don Bosco High School while pursuing MA in international politics from Dibrugarh University. At night, he would attend law college.
Briefly a lawyer and a journalist, Sangma was eventually drawn to politics, with the Congress appointing him vice-president of the Youth Congress in 1973. Four years later, he was elected to Lok Sabha from Tura, a constituency which he continued to represent almost continuously, except in the ninth Lok Sabha, which lasted about 13 months.
First appointed a deputy minister for industries by Indira Gandhi in 1980, Sangma remained an MoS for over 12 years, serving in different ministries like Commerce, Supply, Home and Labour, until he was made a cabinet minister for I&B in the Narasimha Rao government in 1995-96.
His greatest moment arrived on May 23, 1996 when Sangma, just 49 at the time, was elected Lok Sabha Speaker. This marked many firsts — of being unanimously elected Speaker, of being the first Speaker from the Opposition, the first from a Scheduled Tribe as well as the first Christian. He was also the first tribal to become a cabinet minister at the Centre in 1995.
Uncompromising when it came to safeguarding the fundamentals of national interests, his tenure as labour minister saw a sharp decline in industrial strikes and lock-outs in the country.
Known for his photographic memory, meticulous homework and complete mastery of subjects at hand, Sangma always had total control over the House, ensuring that rules were strictly observed even in the midst of stormy debates. His ability to pick up languages to communicate with members from different states remains inimitable.
Sangma came from a matrilineal society, and his stint as Speaker saw the formation of a Standing Joint Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women as well as a Joint Parliamentary Committee for considering the Constitution (81st Amendment) Bill, 1996 that sought to provide 33 per cent reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies.
But Sangma faced controversies later in his political career, especially when he quit the Congress along with Sharad Pawar and Tariq Anwar over party president Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin, and formed the NCP in 1999. He did not get along well with Pawar and left the NCP in 2004 for the Trinamool Congress, from which he was elected to Lok Sabha that year. Two years later, he rejoined the NCP and returned to state politics, getting elected as an MLA in 2008.
Four years later, he stood as a candidate for the President’s office in June 2012, which created another rift between him and Pawar, prompting him to resign once more. Sangma lost the election, despite the Opposition BJP, AIADMK and BJD extending support. In 2013, he launched the National People’s Party (NPP) and returned to Lok Sabha in 2014, attending it regularly — even the day before he died.
While campaigning for elections, Sangma would often crack jokes and tell life stories instead of hitting out at opponents. He would stop for tea at a roadside stall, inquiring about the crop. Sometimes he would even take part in a village football match.
The last time he delivered a lecture was at the end of an inter-college debate organised by Sonapur College on the outskirts of Guwahati on January 28, 2016. “The voice of the Northeast is not sufficiently heard in Parliament, in Delhi and across the country. We have to raise our voice to be heard properly. We need fearless public speakers like Hem Barua, Dinesh Goswami and G G Swell. Those were the kind of leaders and public representatives we had in the past who spoke fearlessly, loudly and clearly. We have to produce such leaders, and in more numbers,” he said.
His name was Purno, which in most languages means complete, total. Sangma indeed lived a purno life.
P.A. Sangma, former Lok Sabha Speaker, passes away
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