Bhopal: Veteran leader, former union minister Arif Baig passes away

Correspondent

NewsBits.in

BHOPAL: Veteran leader and former union minister Arif Baig passed away in Bhopal on Monday.

Baig, 81, was a former union minister who was elected from Bhopal and Betul Lok sabha constituencies in the past.

Among the few politicians who were part of the BJP in its initial years, Arif Baig was known for his oratory.

In 1977, he had defeated Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma, who later became President of India, in Lok Sabha polls in Bhopal. Baig had contested on Bhartiya Lok Dal (BLD) ticket and was the opposition's candidate against Congress.

He had won by over 1 lakh votes. His speeches that started with the line, 'Mere mulk ke maaliko...' struck chord with the people. He was union minister in Morarji Desai's Janata Party government. After spending a long time with BJP, he joined Congress briefly but again returned to BJP.

In fact, Baig, who had spent time in jail during emergency, was among the rare Muslim politicians who was with Jan Sangh and also with BJP in an era when Muslims were rare to find in those places. He felt Congress was responsible for plight of Muslims--their share in jobs falling from 33% to less than 3% after independence.

Earlier he was in Socialist party but in 1973 joined Jan Sangh. Due to Baig, many Muslims joined BJP in later years. He was known for his efforts towards communal harmony. In 1996, he was denied ticket and he had quit BJP. But had joined the party again in 2003. 

In 2013, he again returned to electoral politics and contested assembly election from Bhopal North. However, luck was not on his side, as he lost to Congress' Arif Aqueel. Arif Baig was born in Indore. His last rites would be performed at the graveyard near Maulana Azad Central Library in the evening.