"I
was sad to learn of the demise of Raj Kumar Aggarwal. He was 92 and probably
the oldest advocate in the high court in Chandigarh. His son Kapil Dev, who was
kind enough to inform me of his father’s passing away, believes Raj Kumar
Aggarwal represented “the oldest advocate office of the High Courts in the
states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh or Delhi and probably also West
Pakistan.”
I
never met Raj Kumar Aggarwal, but corresponded with him. Early this year, I had
received a very angry letter from him. He was very, very annoyed with The
Tribune’s coverage of the JNU affairs. He suspected that The Tribune had become
“a mouthpiece of the Marxists and their brand of violent, destructive
agenda.”
The
communication was full of passion and anger. He reminded me of a recent history
of Punjab: how in 1978, the then SGPC chief, GS Tohra, and Marxists had joined
hands to help send Harkishan Singh Surjeet to the Rajya Sabha with the help of
the Akali MLAs, and how this alliance wreaked havoc on Punjab. He warned me
that “The Tribune’s continued support to the Marxist brand of violence and
death will plunge Punjab into another reign of terror. The Press can push any
nation into chaos by false reporting as is being done by The Tribune.”
He
had concluded his letter on an ominous note: “I will shortly be approaching my
newspaper agent to discontinue The Tribune with a heavy heart for ending the
100-plus-year-old relationship with The Tribune.” I wrote back to him, as soon
as I could, expressing my surprise and anguish. I offered him to come and have
a cup of coffee with him. He graciously called back to say that we would meet
as soon as he felt a little better. Unfortunately, that did not come
about.
Raj
Kumar Aggarwal’s communication was an elegantly drafted letter. I was struck by
the mental agility and intellectual clarity that Raj Kumar Aggarwal could
command at the age of 92. Though it was not so gentle a rap on the knuckles, I
felt deeply impressed that someone could feel so strongly at that age."
Shri
Harish Khare Editor-in-Chief, The tribune Chandigarh in his column “KAFFEEKLATSCH“ ofSeptember 4th,
2016.
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