BJP veteran Babulal Gaur, who started his career as a trade unionist, went on to become one of the party's tallest figures in Madhya Pradesh, holding several key positions, including that of the chief minister, during his decades long political career.
A leader well respected not only in the BJP but also among other parties, Gaur, 89, died on Wednesday morning in Bhopal after prolonged illness.
During his long political stint, he served as the state Home minister and also held several other portfolios in the BJP-led state governments.
In early 1990s, Gaur, who was then the state urban development minister, shot into limelight when he got the encroachments in the old city area of Bhopal razed with the help of bulldozers, despite strong protest by the Congress.
The action earned him the tag of being the 'bulldozer minister'.
Though a large number of Muslims lost their dwellings following Gaur's anti-encroachment drive, his popularity among the community members did not wane.
He also opposed the construction of temples on encroached land in the state capital.
He political stature was such that he was respected not only by his own partymen, but also by leaders cutting across party lines.
About a month back, state Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Kamal Nath got him airlifted to Delhi for his medical treatment and also visited him recently when the BJP veteran was hospitalised here.
Though he hung up his boots last year, Gaur, an OBC (other backward class) leader who was Madhya Pradesh chief minister from 2004 to 2005 and represented his traditional Govindpura Vidhan Sabha seat 10 times, took keen interest in politics before he slipped into a semi-comatose state.
After two BJP MLAs voted for a Congress-backed bill in the state Assembly last month, he told some journalists, "Nathji is more of a manager than a leader."
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