Paying rich tribute to late Lalji Tandon on his 28th birth anniversary here on Wednesday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said, “In all roles and at every stage of life, as an activist, a party worker, a politician, a public representative, Tandon Ji worked to fulfil same ideology, values and principles. His life was dedicated to public welfare and development.”

On the occasion, the chief minister unveiled a grand statue of Late Lalji Tandon on Kalicharan Vidhyalaya premises, Hardoi road, Lucknow, and dedicated Shatabdi Vistar Bhavan (a new faculty) at the institute after the former governor of Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.

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Stating that Lalji Tandon’s ‘greatness’, ‘gentleness’ and ‘simplicity’ was a reflection of his journey, Yogi said, “His journey as a party worker, minister, a popular parliamentarian, a governor while ensuring public welfare and taking development forward made him the great personality he was.”

He recounted his meeting with Lalji Tandon Ji, where his popularity among the party workers was evident. “The entire Raj Bhavan in Patna was full of his admirers who were not only from Patna but also from Lucknow. ‘Tandon ji ne kaha ab koi chhorta nahi toh main kya karu? Ya toh mujhe baar-bbar Lucknow aana pade ya sab Patna aa jaate hain. karyakarta hain, pura jeevan samarpit kiya hai toh yeh mere parivar jaise hai’,” Yogi recalled.

During his address, Yogi said that the Lalji Tandon Foundation has taken several programmes of public welfare forward, keeping Tandonji’s memories and values alive and intact. “Tandon Ji had a holistic view of business, politics, development and social philosophy of Lucknow. He has contributed significantly to the development of Lucknow,” he added.

CM Yogi said that Tandon ji had a long association with Kalicharan College. “This campus has been a witness to the freedom movement. This institute has produced eminent writers and scientists. Renowned litterateur of Hindi prose Shyam Sundar Das was the first principal here. This institution has given birth to many litterateurs, social workers, scientists and politicians,” he said.

Furthermore, Yogi said that only education can become the medium of change in society. The more we cooperate in this field, the more changes will be seen in every sphere of life. While paying respects to the memories of Tandon ji, CM Yogi appealed to the management and said that the history of this college is 118 years old. “Join the new policy of the government and the government will cooperate with you in improving all the dilapidated buildings here”, he added.

Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak, Satish Mahana, Kaushal Kishore Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs, Suresh Khanna Minister Parliamentary Affairs and Finance, UP, Bhupendra Singh Chowdhary, Dinesh Sharma, Swatantra Dev Singh, among other dignitaries were present on the occasion.