Family members pay respects to veteran leader at his Chhatarpur residence

Family members on Friday paid respects to former Union Minister and JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav at his residence in Delhi's Chhatarpur. The veteran leader breathed his last at a private hospital in Gurguram on Thursday night. He was 75 years old and survived by his wife, a daughter and a son.According to reports, Yadav had collapsed at his Chhatarpur residence on Thursday night and was rushed to Fortis hospital in Gurugram but could not be saved. 

Fortis Memorial Research Institute released a statement, saying Yadav was brought to the emergency ward in an unconscious and unresponsive state. He had been reportedly suffering from kidney-related issues for a long time and regularly underwent dialysis."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 added.

Condolences were expressed by senior political leaders, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi noting that Yadav’s long career in public life and his socialist ideals were inspired by the late socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia. Congress president Mallikarjuna Kharge said that Yadav’s commitment to the politics of social justice would always be remembered. 

He had fought Lok Sabha elections and won from three States -- Madhya Pradesh (Jabalpur), Bihar (Madhepura) and Uttar Pradesh (Badaun).While he may have changed parties -- from the Lok Dal during the Emergency period to forming the Janata Dal with the late Prime Minister V.P. Singh in 1988, and later forming the Janata Dal (United) in the late 1990s (when he parted ways with another former PM H.D. Deve Gowda) and the 2003 avatar with the late George Fernandes and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar -- he remained firm on socialism and its credentials.