Former Haryana Chief Minister and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader Om Prakash Chautala passed away on Friday, December 20, in Gurugram after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 89 years old. A party spokesperson confirmed the news, stating that Chautala died at a hospital in Gurugram.

Om Prakash Chautala was last seen in public during the Haryana Assembly election voting on October 5 this year. He had cast his vote at a polling booth in his hometown, Chautala village, in Sirsa.

Political Legacy

Om Prakash Chautala was the son of Chaudhary Devi Lal, the former Deputy Prime Minister of India, and was born in a small village close to Sirsa, Haryana. Devi Lal was instrumental in the formation of Haryana in 1966 and went on to become the chief minister of the state.

Om Prakash Chautala followed in his father’s footsteps, joining politics and being elected to the Haryana Legislative Assembly in 1970. Over his political career, he served as Haryana’s Chief Minister four times: December 1989–May 1990, July 1990–July 1990, March 1991–April 1991, and July 1999–March 2005.

Chautala founded the INLD party in 1996, which he led until his passing.