By Japan K Pathak, Ahmedabad, 31 August 2012

Gujarat Parivartan Party leader, former Gujarat BJP president and former union minister Kashiram Rana is no more. He died of heart attack in Ahmedabad’s U.N.Mehta hospital.

Shri Kashirambhai was in Ahmedabad to attend Gujarat Parivartan Party’s state executive meeting. He was staying in government circuit house in Shahibag area. At around 1.00 am in morning he suffered chest pain, and was taken to nearby UN Mehta heart hospital, where he died after 3.35 am.

According to a statement issued by Director of UN Mehta institute in Ahmedabad, Shri Karhiram Rana had acute onset of severe chest pain early morning at Circuit house, and was hospitalized at UN Mehta institute of cardiology and research centre, Ahmedabad at 01.10 am. He had acute myocardial infaction with refractory ventricular arrhythmia with pump failure and cardiogenic shock with embolic phenomena. Shri Rana was treated with all emergency critical cardiac care supportive treatment like IABP, pacemaker, ventilator. Inspite of above critical life supporting treatment, he expired at 3.37 am.

Gujarat Parivartan Party has canceled its state executive meeting following this unfortunate incident. Shri Gordhanbhai Zadafia and other leaders of party accompanied Shri Kashirambhai’s body on way to Surat where Kashirambhai’s last rites will be performed at 5.00 pm.

Born on 7 April, 1938, BJP veteran Kashiram Rana was elected MLA in Gujarat assembly for the first time in 1975 from Surat East seat. He was one of the 18 Jan Sangha candidates elected in that election. Jan Sangha had contested only 40 of 181 seats then. It was such a small party in those days. Suresh Mehta had also entered the assembly that year for the first time. Keshubhai was ofcourse there.

Kashirambhai couldn’t win 1980 and 1985 assembly polls from Surat East seat. Kashiram Rana became Mayor of Surat during 1983 and 1987.

Kashiram Rana was elected to the 9th Lok Sabha from Surat constituency in Gujarat in 1989. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2004 from the same constituency. He was made Textile minister by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Vajpayee government’s second and third ministry. He was the only Gujarati cabinet minister at that time in central government. Later on Kashirambhai was almost finished politically like many other BJP veterans in Gujarat in Modi era. He was denied Lok Sabha ticket in 2009. Local BJP unit stopped calling him to party functions. After prolong silence and few years of low profile non-political time, Kashirambhai left the BJP with pain in the month of July this year. He joined Keshubhai Patel and Gordhan Zadafia in newly formed Gujarat Parivartan Party, and was made senior vice president of the party recently.

Paying homage to late BJP man Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter said: Sad to know of demise of Shri Kashiram Rana. Coming from a simple family, he rose to great height & spent his life in service of the people.