As the Congress party prepared for national elections in the spring of 2009, party president Sonia Gandhi informed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that several ministers would be needed to join the organization. Oscar Fernandes, a mild-mannered politician in charge of the union ministry of labor and employment, was the first name on the list. It was shocking since Fernandes lacked the political savvy of Kamal Nath and the election management expertise of Pranab Mukherjee or Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Fernandes was a hardworking backstage guy who died on Monday at the age of 80. Someone who would work in the background for 16-17 hours a day to assist the party in becoming battle-ready. “When he was working in the party, the AICC headquarters wouldn’t close till 3 a.m.,” says senior Congress politician BK Hariprasad. Fernandes was taken to a private hospital in Mangaluru, Karnataka, due to age-related illnesses at the time of his death.
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When he joined the youth Congress in his district, the man from a modest family had his first contact with politics. When he beat Tonse Ananth Pai, a renowned political leader and financier, in 1980, Fernandes established himself as a giant slayer in national politics. It’s another issue because Fernandes was Pai’s election agent in a previous election.
Oscar Fernandes’ election to the Lok Sabha brought him directly to the office of then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, and the young politician was hired as Gandhi’s parliamentary secretary for a year. Fernandes, who began his political career as a member of the Udipi municipal council, spent five terms in the Lok Sabha and was a member of the Rajya Sabha in his third term.
Read also: Cong leader Oscar Fernandes critical, to undergo surgery
Fernandes, a qualified Kuchipudi dancer, has performed on stage with his colleague Veerappa Moily in a dance presentation. While his most recent assignment as a minister was in the labor and jobs ministry, Fernandes excelled in organizational tasks. BP Singh, his assistant, is now the party’s secretary.
