Expressing profound grief over the demise of former Finance Minister and BJP stalwart Arun Jaitley, former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said here on Saturday that Jaitley transformed politics into statesmanship and statesmanship into humaneness.
"With the sad and the most untimely demise of Arun Jaitley, an era in Indian politics has come to a close. India will always continue to be inspired by the ideals of clean, value based-politics which Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Arun Jaitely symbolised," said Badal.
"Jaitley transformed politics into statesmanship and statesmanship into humaneness. Although the loss of every great leader is always untimely, yet nowhere will this be felt more acutely and painfully than in the case of Jaitley's departing from us. He has left us at a time when the world is in a crying need of the values he practiced and symbolised," said Badal in a statement.
"I have lost a great, loving and respectful friend who always sought and valued paternal affection from me," he added.
The former Chief Minister said that for Jaitley, the Akali-BJP alliance "symbolised secular and federal India".
"For Jaitley, the alliance was an article of faith which flowed from the respect for India's natural richness of diversity. His entire life was committed to the ideals, which the alliance symbolises peace and communal harmony," he said.
Jaitley passed away at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, on Saturday afternoon. He was 66.
He had been admitted to the AIIMS earlier this month after he complained of restlessness. He was placed under observation at the hospital's Cardio-Neuro-Centre.
( With inputs from ANI )