India’s Veteran CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury has passed away at the age of 72 after prolonged illness, news agency PTI reported today.
Yechury was in critical condition and was on respiratory support at AIIMS in New Delhi.
The CPI(M) general secretary and former Rajya Sabha MP was admitted in the intensive care unit of AIIMS, Delhi and was being treated for acute respiratory tract infection.
Over the past few days, he had been on respiratory support, under treatment by a multidisciplinary team of doctors.
Yechury succeeded Prakash Karat as the general secretary of the CPM in 2015.
Born on August 12, 1952 in Chennai, Yechury studied in Delhi University during graduation and completed post-graduation from Jawaharlal Nehru University. He is survived by his wife Seema Chishti Yechury and two children.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi expressed his condolences on Yechury’s death and said called him a “protector of the Idea of India with a deep understanding of our country”.
“Sitaram Yechury ji was a friend. A protector of the Idea of India with a deep understanding of our country. I will miss the long discussions we used to have. My sincere condolences to his family, friends, and followers in this hour of grief,” Gandhi wrote, sharing his photo with Yechury on X.
(Agencies; Picture Courtesy: PTI)