Jaipur: Senior Congress functionary and former leader of the opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly, Rameshwar Dudi, passed away in Bikaner shortly after midnight Saturday. He was 62. Dudi had been in a coma for nearly 25 months following a brain stroke in Aug 2023. According to family members, he breathed his last around 1am.A large number of Congress members and supporters gathered outside his home as news of his demise spread. His final journey began from his residence in Vaidya Magharam Colony, Bikaner, with former CM Ashok Gehlot and PCC chief Govind Singh Dotasra among those carrying the bier.Born on July 1, 1963, in Bikaner, Dudi completed his BCom from the city’s BJS Rampuria College. His father, Jetharam Dudi, served as pradhan of Nokha Panchayat Samiti. Dudi rose through the ranks of Rajasthan politics before making national headlines in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections by contesting against Bollywood actor Dharmendra in Bikaner. Although he lost that closely fought battle, it was enough to establish his position as a politician with a mass base and growing stature. His political legacy continued through his wife, Sushila Dudi, who won the Nokha assembly seat in 2023 on a Congress ticket. Nokha remains Congress’s only seat in Bikaner district.Unlike most Jat politicians who preferred traditional attire, Dudi was popularly known as the “pant-shirt Jat leader”. Before his illness, he was a familiar figure in Bikaner’s old city, often seen riding his motorcycle and mingling with friends and locals till late into the night.Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma wrote on X, “The news of the demise of… Shri Rameshwar Dudi ji, is extremely heartbreaking. May God grant a place to the departed soul in His supreme abode.” Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi sent a condolence message, describing Dudi’s demise as a “deep loss to the party”. Recalling his association with Dudi, Gehlot said, “Just a few days before my visit, he had come to meet me and we had a long conversation. We made the best possible arrangements for his treatment. Seeing Dudi ji, who lived such an active life, fall ill like this pained all of us deeply.”
