Senior Cong leader M V Rajasekharan no more

Former Union minister and senior Congress leader M V Rajasekharan passed away in a private hospital in Bengaluru on Monday.

Rajasekharan (91) was suffering from prolonged illness. According to a family member, he was suffering from multi-organ dysfunction and was undergoing treatment in private hospital in the city. He is survived by his wife Girija Rajasekharan, two sons and two daughters.

Rajasekharan served as Union Minister of State for Planning in the Manmohan Singh ministry. An agriculturist and rural development consultant, Rajasekharan was born on September 12, 1928, at Maralawadi in Ramanagara district.

Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, who condoled the death of the Congress leader, remembered him as a politician with "simplicity, humility and great maturity".

Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah and other Congress leaders met Rajasekharan's family and paid their respects. The party held a condolence meet in the evening.

Meanwhile, former prime minister H D Deve Gowda and his son, former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy also condoled Rajasekharan's death. Recalling his contributions, Deve Gowda said Rajasekharan was a staunch Gandhian and with his demise, the country had lost a principled-politician who was committed to rural development.