Shekhar died at 0845 hours IST, said a doctor of the Apollo Hospital where the former PM was admitted three months ago.
"He was suffering from multiple myloma," Dr Rakesh Chopra, senior consultant, oncology told PTI. Shekhar is survived by two sons.
Shekhar became India’s eleventh Prime Minister on November 10, 1990 and resigned on June 21, 1991. He was a Lok Sabha member from Ballia in Uttar Pradesh and chief of the Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya).
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh condoled Shekhar’s death, calling him a truly secular nationalist who was committed to people’s welfare and national development.
Former PM V P Singh described Shekhar “one of the tallest political personalities in India” and “a man of conviction and warmth.”
From Young Turk to seven-month PM
Shekhar was called Chankaya and Bhishma Pitamaha of Indian politics for his vast experience in public life.
He had friends in all political parties and believed that there are no permanent foes or friends in politics.
Shekhar was born on July 1, 1927 in a farmer's family in Ibrahimpatti in Ballia. He was a student leader in Allahabad University and joined the socialist movement in the 1950s.
His first big break in politics came in 1962 when he was elected to the Rajya Sabha as a member of the Praja Socialist Party.
In 1965 he joined the Congress and soon became the general secretary of its Parliamentary Party. As an MP, Chandra Shekhar opposed policies he thought were creating monopolies.
He and other ‘Young Turks’—leaders who opposed Indira Gandhi’s ‘elitist’ policies—in the Congress were imprisoned during the Emergency. Shekhar became the president of the Janata Party, which was formed in 1977 and formed the first non-Congress government at the Centre.
When the Nation Front came to power in 1989, Shekhar believed he must get the Prime Minister’s post but was shocked when V P Singh was chosen to head the coalition government.
Shekhar became bitter against V P Singh and deputy PM Devi Lal and worked against the government during Mandal agitation and finally brought it down in 1990.
Chandra Shekhar became Prime Minister with the Congress’ support though he himself had only some 60 MPs of his own. His government survived for seven months—a tumultuous period when India was on the brink of bankruptcy with its foreign exchange reserves almost empty.
A staunch socialist, Chandra Shekhar was forced to accept the terms of international lending institutions. His government had to pledge gold at the international market and could not present the Budget because the Congress withdrew support after alleging that it was spying on Rajiv Gandhi.
After his government fell, Chandra Shekhar gradually lost his political influence but acquired the image of an elder statesman who was respected by all parties.
