Goa Chief Minister and former Defence Minister,Manohar Parikar has died at an age of 63.He has been battling long with the pancreatic ailment for more than a year.
Mr Parrikar’s heath had been fluctuating for several days and worsened on Saturday morning. The former Defence Minister had been in and out of hospital in Goa, Mumbai, Delhi and New York since February last year.He also worked as an RSS pracharak and was a technocrat-turned politician.
A Mumbai IIT graduate in metallurgical engineering and among the first members of BJP in Goa, Parrikar was instrumental in raising the profile of his party from its just four members in state assembly in 1994 to its present status as a ruling party in the state assembly.
President of India denoted him as the ‘epitome of integrity’ and conveyed condolence to the late Goa CM
Extremely sorry to hear of the passing of Shri Manohar Parrikar, Chief Minister of Goa, after an illness borne with fortitude and dignity. An epitome of integrity and dedication in public life, his service to the people of Goa and of India will not be forgotten #PresidentKovind
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) 17 March 2019
Congress leader Rahul gandhi also conveyed his condolence to the passed away CM through Twitter
I am deeply saddened by the news of the passing of Goa CM, Shri Manohar Parrikar Ji, who bravely battled a debilitating illness for over a year.
Respected and admired across party lines, he was one of Goa’s favourite sons.
My condolences to his family in this time of grief.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) 17 March 2019
On Sunday morning, BJP core committee leader Dayanand Mandrekar had said Parrikar’s health had deteriorated and the party may appoint a new leader soon to succeed Parrikar.
He was the first BJP chief minister who had publicly said in 2013 that Narendra Modi, the then Gujarat Chief Minister, should be the face of the party in 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Parrikar was considered as a confidante of Modi and stood by him during party’s decision at a key BJP meet in Goa naming the Gujarat strongman as campaign in-charge before 2014 elections.
He was inducted into the Narendra Modi cabinet as the defence minister in 2014, under whose tenure India conducted the surgical strikes in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. He returned as Goa CM on March 14, 2017 after the BJP managed to cobble up an alliance in the coastal state to keep the BJP out of power.
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