Former Union Minister Sharad Yadav passes away

Former Union Minister and a prominent socialist leader, Sharad Yadav, passed away on Thursday night at 75 years of age. 

He had been ailing for a long time was taken to Fortis Hospital after he collapsed at his home in Delhi on Thursday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the passing away of Yadav. Pained by the passing away of Shri Sharad Yadav Ji. In his long years in public life, he distinguished himself as MP and Minister. He was greatly inspired by Dr. Lohia’s ideals. I will always cherish our interactions. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti, PM Modi tweeted.

According to a statement from Gurugram’s Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Mr Yadav was brought to the emergency ward in an unconscious and unresponsive state.

“On examination, he did not have any pulse or recordable blood pressure. He underwent CPR as per ACLS protocols. Despite best efforts, he could not be revived and was declared dead at 10.19 pm,” the statement said.

During his political career, Sharad Yadav served as a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in the late ’90s and the VP Singh government in 1989.

A three-time member of Rajya Sabha, he was elected to the Lok Sabha seven times. The founder-member of Bihar’s ruling Janata Dal United, he quit after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ended the Grand Alliance and joined hands with the BJP.

For most of his life, he remained a key presence in the opposition. He, however, reconciled both with the Congress and his arch political foe Lalu Yadav and played a key role in crafting the Grand Alliance after the 2015 assembly elections in Bihar.