Alvida Gurucharanji,
Nishabh hain hum sab sab !
A senior journalist friend, an ideal n true fighter adhered to principles, come what may, thorough gentleman and in true sense a thinker Gurucharanji has left us in immense shock.
He was admitted in DDU hospital since the last five days after suffering from a severe brain stroke.
He breathed his last on Wednesday evening at 6.30 PM and will be given final adieu in Chand Nagar, Ravi Nagar near Tagore Garden , New Delhi on Thursday from 12 to 1 PM . He was on ventilator in the ICU of DDU since his admission in critical health condition.
I had not met him since a year, my last meeting being in Press Club of India. I came to know about his illness from a post in social media through a journalist friend Kushal Jeena.
I tried his mobile number but could’nt contact his anguished family. I talked to sr journo Umakant Lakhera who said that he is in an intensive care unit of Deen Dayal Hospital on ventilator under the care of senior Dr. M S Bisht and would go to see him after he comes in the general ward as no body is allowed in ICU, especially, in these being pandemic days.
I was very hopeful of his cure, thinking to meet him after he comes to the ward. Oh my God. Just now got the tragic news of his passing away, literally shaking me and my family from inside.
I have no words to express. I considered Gurucharanji as an inspiring journalist and a relentless fighter through his pen for the poor, dalits n the economically deprived classes of the society.
Former union minister Ram Vilas Paswan respected him to the core and accorded him the responsibility to edit the party’s magazine Dalit Sena for several years including nominating him as the Member of Railways, while he was the union Railway Minister.
Dalit Sena magazine carried articles of the woes of the grass root people hailing from the lowest ebb of the society, hailing from the most deprived sections with writings of Gurucharan as the champion of the poorest of the poor.
Gurucharanji was a very jovial and affable person and a journalist of repute, full of ethics and principles dedicated to the cause of the have nots. He worked in Dainik Hindustan and contributed articles in several reputed dailies and weeklies on burning issues of regional n national significance, for decades.
He was well known in the journalist fraternity commanding tremendous respect as a principled person having special soft corner and concern for the down trodden sections of the society.
He respected Dr. Ambedkar and his values and principles to the core. A seasoned journalist with secular, socialist and democratic credentials Gurucharanji was a through gentleman n down to earth human beung with always a smile on his face.
He was a friend of friends with a transparent heart and affable nature representing the working class concerns always believing in a secular, democratic and plural society. He left for his heavenly abode leaving behind his grief stricken wife n two daughters including hundreds of friends and well wishers in a state of utter shock literally wordless. I am one of them.
According to Gurucharanji’s close friend , senior journalist Umakant Lakhera, 64 year Gurucharan was born in Dehradun but his entire childhood passed in Rishikesh. He was quite active in student politics from his college days and chose journalism as his career after completing his BSC from Garhwal university. He earned name and fame by virtue of contributing significant investigative articles in leading Hindi dailies n periodicals on burning issues of national and regional importance being a free lancer scribe for decades. He also worked in Dainik Hindustan for several years as its special correspondent. He was extremely popular among his friends n well wishers due to his cordial nostalgic behaviour also being a source of inspiration to many of them.
His untimely passing away will be a great void in the journalists fraternity added Umakant Lakhera. According to senior journalist Hemendra Bartwal Gurucharan was a dedicated journalist and a noble soul. May his soul rest in peace.
Om Shanti. Alvida Gurucharanji !
