Former Union minister Oscar Fernandes passes away

Mangaluru: Rajya Sabha MP and former Union minister Oscar Fernandes who was undergoing treatment at a private hospital here passed away on Monday, September 13.

Fernandes suffered internal injuries after falling at his residence while doing exercises.

Dr. Oscar Fernandes born 27 March 1941 is a senior Indian National Congress leader and was the Union Cabinet Minister for Transport, Road and Highways and Labour and Employment, Government of India in UPA government.

He is one of the closest confidants of the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and one of the major leaders in the taking of important decisions of Congress Party. He is also the Chairman of Central Election Authority of the All India Congress Committee.

He was previously the AICC General Secretary, the Minister of State (Independent charge) of the Ministry of Labour and Employment in Dr. Manmohan Singh’s first UPA government in India. He served as Parliamentary Secretary to Rajiv Gandhi.

He was elected to the 7th Lok Sabha in 1980 from Udupi constituency in Karnataka. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in 1984, 1989, 1991 and 1996 from the same constituency. Later, he was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1998. He was re-elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2004. He was a Union Minister from 2004 to 2009, holding a number of portfolios such as Statistics and Programme Implementation, NRI Affairs, Youth and Sports Affairs and Labour and Employment. He served two terms as a member of the Council of the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru.