Bhopal, Feb 17 (PTI) The Madhya Pradesh legislative assembly on Tuesday paid tributes to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, and former Union ministers Suresh Kalmadi and Kanhu Charan Lenka, who died in the recent past.
The House also paid tributes to Sunil Kumar Kushwaha, an Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) soldier who was charred to death in an accident while on duty in Assam on December 31 last year, and Shailendra Singh Bhadoria, an Army soldier who lost his life when a military vehicle fell into a ditch in the Jammu division on January 22 this year.
As the proceedings of the second day of the state assembly’s budget session began, Speaker Narendra Singh Tomar talked about the contributions of Pawar, Kalmadi and Lenka, as well as the soldiers who died in accidents.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and Leader of the Opposition Umang Singhar paid tributes to all the deceased and remembered their contribution.
Yadav said he shared a personal bond with Ajit Pawar and that he had done a lot for the welfare of farmers.
“His demise is painful. He died in a tragic incident. I express my condolences on his passing away,” the CM said.
Yadav said that with Kalmadi’s death, the country lost a senior sports administrator and leader.
The chief minister also paid rich tributes to Lenka.
He expressed grief over the deaths of soldiers Sunil Kumar and Shailendra Singh Bhadoria, both from Bhind in Madhya Pradesh.
Singhar said that the untimely death of Pawar, a popular public leader and a skilled administrator, led to an irreparable loss to society and the nation.
“Pawar was known as Ajit Dada in Maharashtra. He had a special love for Baramati. He would get ready early in the morning and meet people,” he said.
Singhar also expressed grief over Kalmadi’s death, saying that he increased sports awareness in the country and worked to promote Olympics.
Singhar also offered his condolences to the families of 35 people, who died due to contaminated drinking water in Indore’s Bhagirathpura area.
The government, in its ‘death audit’ report to the MP High Court, has stated that 16 people have died in the Bhagirathpura area of Indore following the outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea caused by contaminated drinking water in December 2025. Local residents have, however, claimed 35 deaths.
Later, a two-minute silence was observed in honour of all the deceased, and then the proceedings of the House were adjourned for 10 minutes.
Pawar died in a plane crash at Baramati in Maharashtra’s Pune district on January 28, while Kalmadi died on January 6 at the age of 81 following a prolonged illness.
Lenka was a senior Congress leader in Odisha and also held the position of Minister of State for Railways. He passed away on February 13 in Bhubaneswar. PTI MAS NP
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