Makhan Lal Fotedar, a veteran Congress leader who was a close confidante of former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, died on Wednesday. He died at a hospital in Gurugram on the outskirts of Delhi, Congress party sources said. Hailing from Kashmir, Mr. Fotedar was ushered into politics by Jawaharlal Nehru in early 1950s and he gradually strengthened his position in the Congress to become one of the most powerful persons in the party.
He enjoyed the trust of Indira Gandhi who had made him her political secretary in 1980. After her death, Rajiv Gandhi also made him his political secretary for three years, before inducting him in his Cabinet as a minister.

Makhan Lal Fotedar, a veteran Congress leader who was a close confidante of former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, died on Wednesday. He died at a hospital in Gurugram on the outskirts of Delhi, Congress party sources said. Hailing from Kashmir, Mr. Fotedar was ushered into politics by Jawaharlal Nehru in early 1950s and he gradually strengthened his position in the Congress to become one of the most powerful persons in the party.
He enjoyed the trust of Indira Gandhi who had made him her political secretary in 1980. After her death, Rajiv Gandhi also made him his political secretary for three years, before inducting him in his Cabinet as a minister.