Trevor51P0492 at 03:33, 25 April 2026

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{{Short description|Indian businessman and politician (1968–2024)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| office = Member of the<br>[[Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly]]
| term_start = 2017
| term_end = 21 April 2022
| predecessor = [[Hemesh Kharkwal]]
| successor = [[Pushkar Singh Dhami]]
| constituency = [[Champawat Assembly constituency|Champawat]]
| party = {{ubl|[[Bharatiya Janata Party]] (from 2012)|[[Independent politician|Independent]] (until 2012)}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1968|08|15|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Champawat district]], [[Uttar Pradesh]], India
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2024|5|3|1968|08|15|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Dehradun]], [[Uttarakhand]], India
}}

'''Kailash Chandra Gahtori''' (15 August 1968 – 3 May 2024) was an Indian businessman and politician who served in the [[Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly]] from 2017 until his resignation in 2022, representing the [[Champawat Assembly constituency|Champawat constituency]] as a member of the [[Bharatiya Janata Party]].

== Biography ==
Kailash Chandra Gahtori was born on 15 August 1968 in the [[Champawat district]] of [[Uttarakhand]], which was then part of [[Uttar Pradesh]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Upadhyay |first=Vineet |date=11 May 2022 |title=MLA Who Vacated Seat For U'khand CM: Successful Builder, Bizman, Politician |url=https://newindian.in/mla-who-vacated-seat-for-ukhand-cm-successful-builder-bizman-politician/ |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=The New Indian |language=en-US |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107014649/https://newindian.in/mla-who-vacated-seat-for-ukhand-cm-successful-builder-bizman-politician/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Kailash Chandra Gahtori, BJP MLA from Champawat |url=https://ourneta.com/h/kailash-chandra-gahtori/ |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=Our Neta |language=en-US |archive-date=3 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240503101555/https://ourneta.com/neta/kailash-chandra-gahtori/kailash-chandra-gahtori/ |url-status=live }}</ref> After graduating from university with an arts degree, Gahtori started a construction company in [[Madhya Pradesh]]. Gahtori returned to [[Uttarakhand]] in 2002, when he unsuccessfully ran as an independent candidate for the [[Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly]] in the [[2002 Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly election|2002 election]], running in the [[Lohaghat Assembly constituency|Lohaghat constituency]]. After his defeat, Gahtori returned to managing his business, and he came to own a hotel and two schools in the city of [[Kashipur, Uttarakhand|Kashipur]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Mishra |first=Avaneesh |date=21 April 2022 |title=Kailash Chandra Gahtori, the construction magnate who sacrificed seat for Uttarakhand CM Dhami |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/newsmaker-kailash-chandra-gahtori-construction-magnate-sacrificed-seat-dhami-uttarakhand-7880968/ |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=[[The Indian Express]] |language=en |archive-date=20 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120122732/https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/newsmaker-kailash-chandra-gahtori-construction-magnate-sacrificed-seat-dhami-uttarakhand-7880968/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Gahtori was a longtime member of the [[Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh]], a paramilitary organization affiliated with the [[Bharatiya Janata Party]], and he officially joined the BJP in 2012. Later that year, Gahtori was elected to the Champawat [[District council (India)|district council]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> Gahtori again ran for the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly in the [[2017 Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly election|2017 election]], running as the BJP candidate in the [[Champawat Assembly constituency|Champawat constituency]]; Gahtori defeated [[Indian National Congress]] incumbent [[Hemesh Kharkwal]], receiving 36,601 votes compared to Kharkwal's 19,241.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Champawat Assembly Election Results |url=https://www.oneindia.com/champawat-assembly-elections-uk-55/ |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=[[Oneindia.com]] |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107085341/https://www.oneindia.com/champawat-assembly-elections-uk-55/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Gahtori ran for re-election in the [[2022 Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly election]], facing Kharkwal in a rematch. Gahtori again defeated Kharkwal, but by a reduced margin, receiving 32,547 votes compared to Kharkwal's 27,243.<ref name=":2" /> However, [[Pushkar Singh Dhami]], the [[List of chief ministers of Uttarakhand|chief minister of Uttarakhand]], was defeated in his bid for re-election in the [[Khatima Assembly constituency|Khatima constituency]]. In order for Dhami to remain chief minister, Gahtori resigned from his seat on 21 April 2022, allowing Dhami to run for the Champawat constituency in a [[by-election]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hebbar |first=Nistula |date=21 April 2022 |title=Uttarakhand CM Dhami to contest Champawat bypoll |language=en-IN |work=[[The Hindu]] |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/champawat-mla-resigns-vacates-seat-for-uttarakhand-cm-dhami/article65340909.ece |access-date=7 November 2022 |issn=0971-751X |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107070820/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/champawat-mla-resigns-vacates-seat-for-uttarakhand-cm-dhami/article65340909.ece |url-status=live }}</ref> Gahtori stated that it was his duty to resign, and that it would be an honour for Champawat to be represented by a chief minister.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=21 April 2022 |title=Champawat MLA Kailash Gahtori resigns, vacates seat for Uttarakhand CM |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/politics/champawat-mla-kailash-gahtori-resigns-vacates-seat-for-uttarakhand-cm-122042100334_1.html |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=[[Business Standard]] |language=en |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107070820/https://www.business-standard.com/article/politics/champawat-mla-kailash-gahtori-resigns-vacates-seat-for-uttarakhand-cm-122042100334_1.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Dhami won 31 May by-election in a landslide, receiving over 92% of the vote; his 58,258 votes was the highest number of votes received in a by-election in Uttarakhand's history.<ref>{{Cite web |date=3 June 2022 |title=Uttarakhand CM wins bypoll by getting over 92% votes; BJD leads in Odisha |url=https://www.theweek.in/news/india/2022/06/03/uttarakhand-cm-bypoll-by-getting-over-92-votes-bjd-leads-in-odisha.html |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=[[The Week (Indian magazine)|The Week]] |language=en |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107072322/https://www.theweek.in/news/india/2022/06/03/uttarakhand-cm-bypoll-by-getting-over-92-votes-bjd-leads-in-odisha.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=3 June 2022 |title=Pushkar Singh Dhami wins crucial Champawat bypoll by 55,025 votes, breaks record |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/dhami-wins-crucial-champawat-bypoll-by-over-55-000-votes-101654237824468.html |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=[[Hindustan Times]] |language=en |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107070825/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/dhami-wins-crucial-champawat-bypoll-by-over-55-000-votes-101654237824468.html |url-status=live }}</ref> After Dhami's victory, ''[[The Times of India]]'' reported that Gahtori was being considered for a ministerial position.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Singh |first=Kautilya |date=5 June 2022 |title=After Bypoll Win, Dhami Set To Rejig Bureaucracy |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/after-bypoll-win-dhami-set-to-rejig-bureaucracy/articleshow/92013815.cms |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=[[The Times of India]] |language=en |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107070816/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/after-bypoll-win-dhami-set-to-rejig-bureaucracy/articleshow/92013815.cms |url-status=live }}</ref> On 16 June 2022, Gahtori was appointed chairman of the Uttarakhand Forest Development Corporation, which gave him the rank of minister.<ref name="U'khand: Gehtori appointed chairman of forest development corporation">{{cite news|last1=ThePrint|title=U'khand: Gehtori appointed chairman of forest development corporation|url=https://theprint.in/india/ukhand-gehtori-appointed-chairman-of-forest-development-corporation/999601/|accessdate=20 January 2024|date=16 June 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120124002/https://theprint.in/india/ukhand-gehtori-appointed-chairman-of-forest-development-corporation/999601/|archivedate=20 January 2024}}</ref>

Gahtori died from a prolonged illness at the [[Government Doon Medical College]] hospital in [[Dehradun]], on 3 May 2024. He was 55.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=3 May 2024 |title=Former Champawat MLA Kailash Gahtori, Who Vacated Seat for CM Pushkar Dhami, Dead |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/india/uttarakhand/former-champawat-mla-kailash-gahtori-who-vacated-seat-for-cm-pushkar-dhami-dead-3006279 |access-date=3 May 2024 |website=[[Deccan Herald]] |language=en |archive-date=3 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240503082326/https://www.deccanherald.com/india/uttarakhand/former-champawat-mla-kailash-gahtori-who-vacated-seat-for-cm-pushkar-dhami-dead-3006279 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gahtori, Kailash Chandra}}
[[Category:1968 births]]
[[Category:2024 deaths]]
[[Category:Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Uttarakhand]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian businesspeople]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian businesspeople]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Uttarakhand]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:Uttarakhand MLAs 2017–2022]]
[[Category:Uttarakhand MLAs 2022–2027]]
[[Category:People from Champawat district]]

Kailash Chandra Gahtori - Revision history

Trevor51P0492 at 03:33, 25 April 2026