Former Punjab CM Prakash Singh Badal passes away

Former Punjab chief minister and Shiromani Akali Dal patriarch Parkash Singh Badal, who was admitted at a private hospital in Mohali, died on Tuesday, hospital officials and party sources said. He was 95.Badal was admitted to the Fortis Hospital in Mohali over a week ago after he complained of uneasiness in breathing.He breathed his last around 8 pm, hospital officials told PTI.

Born on December 8, 1927 in Muktsar, Badal was elected as village sarpanch at the age of 20. He was elected as an MLA for the first time in 1957 on a Congress ticket. He became the chief minister of Punjab for the first time in 1970 at the age of 43, taking over from Gurnam Singh. After becoming Akali Dal president in 1995, Badal joined hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party to form a pre-poll alliance which won the assembly polls in 1997. He served as the chief minister again from 2007 to 2017 before losing to the Congress. In 2008, Badal handed over the reins of the party to his son Sukhbir Singh Badal amid opposition from within his own party.