India's former Home Minister Shivraj Patil dies at 91

Former Union Home Minister and Congress Party leader Shivraj Patil died at 91 in Maharashtra’s Latur on Friday. Patil breathed his last breath at his residence at around 6:30 am.

Patil has been suffering from a prolonged illness caused by age-related ailments and was undergoing treatment at home. Congress party workers soon expressed their condolences and grief over his death.

Singh has been a prominent Indian politician since the 80s. He won his parliamentary seat in 1980, 1984, 1989, 1991, 1996, 1998 and 1999 before losing it to BJP’s Rupatai Patil Nilangekar in 2004. He has also won the Latur assembly seat in 1972 and 1978.

Visuals from outside Patil’s residence showed people and party workers gathered in large numbers to pay their respects to the departed soul.

It is pertinent to note that Patil has held several notable positions in his long political career. He served as a Member of Parliament from Latur in the Marathwada region.

In 2008, during the devastating 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai, Patil was serving as the Home Minister of India. However, he quit after facing backlash over the attack and criticisms for security lapses.

He accepted his failure to prevent the Mumbai attack and stepped down, taking moral responsibility.

He is survived by his son, Shailesh Patil, daughter-in-law Archana, who is a BJP leader, and two granddaughters. “I pray to god to give strength to the bereaved family. Shivraj Patil was a very disciplined leader. He was known for his mannerisms and was widely appreciated for his discipline," Congress MP Sukhdeo Bhagat said in a statement.