Jaitley, a towering statesman: Maha Guv

Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao on Saturday expressed grief over the death of BJP stalwart and former Union minister Arun Jaitley, calling it a "great loss for the nation".

Rao hailed Jaitley as a "towering statesman, legal luminary, brilliant Parliamentarian, outstanding Union minister and a gifted orator".

RIP Arun Jaitley | Former finance minister passes away at 66

"As Union Minister of Finance, Corporate Affairs, Commerce and other portfolios, he created benchmarks with his work and took several path-breaking decisions to empower the common man, industry, businesses and other stakeholders," the Governor said.

Rao remembered his association with Jaitley as the latter's deputy in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in the first NDA government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

"He was very supportive and articulate. His demise is a great loss for the entire nation," the Governor added.

Rao further said he, along with K Chandrasekhar Rao (now Telangana Chief Minister) and MP Keshav Rao, had met Jaitley ahead of the introduction of the bill for the creation of the southern state in the Rajya Sabha.

Jaitley was briefed about various issues relating to Telangana, he added.