Sitting Rajya Sabha MP and a veteran Congress leader, Murli Deora is no more. He finally succumbed to death in his fight against cancer and took his last breath at his residence in the early hours of Monday. He was not keeping well for quite some time. Murli Deora was 77 years old. He is survived by his wife and two sons, one of whom, Milind Deora, is a former MP.
Image Source: Reuters
Veteran Congress leader was a minister in successive governments
The mortal remains of the deceased leader would be kept at the party office in Mumbai to allow workers and supporters pay their last respect. The last rites will be performed later today at the crematorium in Chandanwadi. Murli Deora was a seasoned politician who held important portfolios in many governments at the centre. It was in 1975 that he was first elected to a civic body in Mumbai. He was also the Mayor of Mumbai for three years from 1975 to 1978. He later became a Lok Sabha MP from South Mumbai and won this seat 4 times. This seat is today held by his son Milind.
He will be remembered for his oil diplomacy as a Petroleum Minister
During the first UPA regime, Murli Deora was made Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister. During this period, he is credited with taking oil diplomacy into many countries that included Egypt, Myanmar, and Algeria. He was always looking to fulfill the shortage of petroleum that India faced and had talks with petroleum ministers of countries like Chad, Sudan, Comoros, and Ethiopia. He held the post of Mumbai Congress President for 22 long years. He was made Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology in UPA II. It was his hard work and initiatives that resulted in India hosting the first India-Africa Hydrocarbon Conference and Exhibition in 2007.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed his grief at the death of this veteran Congress leader. Modi described him as an able administrator and a person with warm nature who made friends across party lines.
My deepest condolences to @milinddeora & the Deora family on Shri Murli Deora’s demise. May his soul rest in peace.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 24, 2014
Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh said he was saddened by the demise of Shri Murli Deora. “One of the most amiable persons I knew. He had friends across Party Line. We shall forever miss him. Our condolences to the family, “he tweeted.
Murli Deora was a graduate in economics and he was a successful entrepreneur besides being a politician. Despite being in Congress party all his life, his warm nature and amiable personality made him endearing to politicians belonging to different political parties.
Reacting on the demise of Murli Deora, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu said, “I am deeply saddened by the demise of Shri Murli Deora. We have lost a veteran Parliamentarian and an experienced administrator,” He added that with the death of Deora, India has lost a very able Parliamentarian.
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About Sanjay Tandon
Sanjay Tandon is a graduate engineer from IIT Varanasi. He has been writing as a freelancer for many years. He loves to write on various niches. He is passionate about politics and economy and spends his free time watching news channels. He is also an expert on relationships.
