How Sushil Kumar Modi left his mark on Bihar politics: Gentleman politician who helped usher in stability

Nitish Kumar with Sushil Kumar Modi astatine an oath taking ceremonial successful 2012, astatine Raj Bhawan, Patna. (Express Archive/Alok Jain)

Modi was a vociferous professional of Lalu Prasad. Right from being 1 of 5 petitioners successful the fodder scam case, helium held 48 conferences successful 2017 to target the RJD chief and his household successful the alleged ungraded scam that ended up with CBI raids, and the lodging of the IRCTC lawsuit against Lalu Prasad, his lad Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, and others. After the Centre’s announcement of the Padma Bhushan for Modi, the RJD welcomed it. Praising Modi, RJD spokesperson Subodh Kumar Mehta said the enactment ever respected him arsenic an opponent. “It is simply a substance of pridefulness that a person coming from the JP Movement and belonging to the procreation of Lalu Prasad has been bestowed with the Padma award. Even though helium was our governmental adversary, we ever respected his governmental acumen and meticulous mentation arsenic an opponent,” Mehta told The Indian Express.

Recalling the contributions of Modi, whom helium called a “gentleman politician”, BJP nationalist spokesperson Guru Prakash Paswan, who is from the adjacent procreation of Bihar BJP leaders, said, “There was ever a batch to larn from Sushil ji, close from his knowing of a taxable to his conduct, simplicity, and humility. The Padma grant is an acknowledgement of his singular service. Rising from the JP Movement and the acheronian signifier of Emergency, helium tin beryllium credited with giving Bihar a unchangeable authorities with Nitish Kumar. He was a formidable dependable of sanity and crushed successful Indian polity.”Former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, whose governmental travel besides began on with that of Modi, remembered Modi’s subject arsenic a enactment idiosyncratic and his publication arsenic a minister. “As Bihar’s Finance Minister, helium scripted the state’s turnaround communicative nether Nitish Kumar. As the chairperson of the authorities concern ministers empowered committee connected GST, helium played a important relation successful realising PM Narendra Modi’s imagination of 1 nation, 1 tax,” helium told The Indian Express.

Sushil Kumar Modi with Amit Shah, who was past BJP’s National President, during the relation to observe the day of Jannayak Karpoori Thakur successful 2015 (Express Archive/Prashant Ravi)

This subject and committedness to the enactment saw Sushil Modi run for the BJP successful Madhya Pradesh during the 2023 Assembly elections adjacent though his doctors advised against it. He had been diagnosed with cancer successful December 2022. But the BJP person visited Chhindwara, the turf of Congress person Kamal Nath, for run soon aft a chemotherapy session, recalled his adjacent subordinate Shailendra Kumar Ojha. Besides his household and staff, nary 1 knew astir his illness. It was lone during the 2024 Lok Sabha canvass run that Modi revealed his illness, expressing his inability to lend to the party. Sushil Modi passed distant connected May 13, 2024.