TV journalist Rohit Sardana passes away days after testing postive for coronavirus

Television journalist Rohit Sardana passed away due to a heart attack on Friday, days after testing positive for coronavirus, according to reports. He was 41. Sardana was an anchor on the Aaj Tak news channel show ‘Dangal’ and had been associated with Zee News earlier. He used to host the show ‘Taal Thok De’ on Zee News. He was awarded the Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Puraskar in 2018. Sardana is survived by his wife, two daughters and parents. He was admitted to a private hospital in Noida after he tested positive for coronavirus. His last rites will take place in his hometown of Kurukshetra in Haryana, according to his colleagues. “We are all shocked by the death of our colleague and friend, Rohit Sardana. This incomparable loss cannot be expressed in words. We express our condolences to his family in this hour of grief,” Aaj Tak tweeted in Hindi. A similar message was posted by the India Today channel in English. Zee News editor-in-chief Sudhir Chaudhary informed about his demise through a tweet.

अब से थोड़ी पहले @capt_ivane का फ़ोन आया।उसने जो कहा सुनकर मेरे हाथ काँपने लगे।हमारे मित्र और सहयोगी रोहित सरदाना की मृत्यु की ख़बर थी।ये वाइरस हमारे इतने क़रीब से किसी को उठा ले जाएगा ये कल्पना नहीं की थी।इसके लिए मैं तैयार नहीं था।ये भगवान की नाइंसाफ़ी है..
ॐ शान्ति

— Sudhir Chaudhary (@sudhirchaudhary) April 30, 2021

Sardana’s death comes just days after senior journalist Raju Mishra (50), who has worked with several national newspapers, died of COVID-19 complications in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad on 28 April. As Firstpost reported earlier , more than 50 journalists have lost their lives in the last 28 days while over 100 journalists have succumbed to the virus since 1 April 2020. Uttar Pradesh has seen the maximum number of verified deaths, followed by Telangana and Maharashtra.   Prime Minister Narendra Modi and political leaders, including home minister Amit Shah and union ministers Kiren Rijiju and Jitendra Singh condoled his demise. Shah lauded his “unbiased and fair reporting”, while Rijiju called him a “fearless and straightforward journalist”.

Rohit Sardana left us too soon. Full of energy, passionate about India’s progress and a kind hearted soul, Rohit will be missed by many people. His untimely demise has left a huge void in the media world. Condolences to his family, friends and admirers. Om Shanti.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 30, 2021

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Pained to learn about Shri Rohit Sardana ji’s untimely demise. In him, the nation has lost a brave journalist who always stood up for unbiased and fair reporting. May God give his family the strength to bear this tragic loss. My deepest condolences to his family and followers.

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) April 30, 2021

I'm deeply shocked & saddened to hear heartbreaking news of senior journalist Rohit Sardana's demise. He was a fearless and straightforward journalist. May his departed soul rest in peace 🙏#RohitSardana pic.twitter.com/PFBSLhkNeN

— Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) April 30, 2021

A promising journalistic career abruptly cut short. His best was yet to come.
Young #RohitSardana , who was only yesterday tweeting to arrange help for #COVID victims, has himself succumbed to the cruel Pandemic. pic.twitter.com/CRiuB9XHgy

— Dr Jitendra Singh (@DrJitendraSingh) April 30, 2021

Former Attorney General of India Soli Sorabjee had succumbed to COVID-19 when he was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi earlier on Friday. India registered 3.86 lakh new COVID-19 cases recorded within 24 hours, as per data updated by the health ministry at 8 am on 30 April. With inputs from PTI