Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhajan Lal passes away

Hisar: Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhajan Lal died in a local hospital following a massive heart attack here this evening. Lal’s family sources said the 81-year-old leader suffered a massive heart attack in the afternoon and was rushed to a local hospital. [caption id=“attachment_20201” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Former Haryana Chief Minister, Bhajan Lal, passed away today. Reuters “]  [/caption] Even as the family was preparing to shift him to the Medicity in Gurgaon, he suffered another attack and died at 5 pm. Lok Sabha member from Hisar, Bhajan Lal is survived by his widow Jasma Devi, a former MLA, two sons Chander Mohan, former Deputy Chief Minister, and Kuldeep Bishnoi, (MLA) and a daughter. The cremation of Bhajan Lal, who was chief minister three times, will take place tomorrow, the sources said. He had contested the last election as a nominee of Haryana Janhit Congress-BL formed by his younger son Kuldeep Bishnoi after the veteran leader had severed his long association with Congress following the appointment of Bhupinder Singh Hooda as the chief minister for the second time in 2009. Bhajan Lal was at his sector 15 residence here when he had suffered stroke and was immediately taken to a private hospital for treatment. Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda described Lal as a seasoned politician who served the state and society, saying his demise was an irreparable loss to the state. Expressing grief, Hooda said the state government had declared a three-day state mourning and a public holiday on June 4, 2011. An official spokesperson said that during the three-day period, the national flag will be flown at half mast through out the state, adding all functions stand cancelled. PTI