George Fernandes dead at 88; Was Defence Minister in Vajpayee government

Former Defence Minister George Fernandes passed away today, at the age of 88. He served as the Defence Minister in the NDA government headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee between 1998 and 2004.

George Fernandes was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and had withdrawn from public life years ago. His last stint as a Parliamentarian was as a Rajya Sabha MP between August 2009 to July 2010.

George Fernandes' claim to fame began as the founder of the Samata Party and an anti-Emergency crusader and civil rights activists. He was one of the top leaders who fought then PM Indira Gandhi when she imposed the Emergency in the middle 1970s. A native of Mangaluru, Fernandes then became a Union Minister in the Janata Party government, which beat the Gandhi led Congress. The government was headed by then PM Morarji Desai- it was in power from 1977 to 1980.