George Mathew Fernandes[3] (3 June 1930 – 29 January 2019) was an Indian trade unionist, statesman,[4] and journalist,[5] who served as the 22nd Defence Minister of India from 1998 until 2004. A veteran socialist, he was a member of the Lok Sabha for over 30 years, starting from Bombay (present-day Mumbai) in 1967 till 2009 mostly representing constituencies from Bihar.[6] He was a key member of the Janata Dal and the founder of the Samata Party.[7] Holding several prominent ministerial portfolios during his career, including communication, industry, railways, and defence,[8] he was posthumously awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian award, in 2020.[9][10][11][12]
