KARACHI: Former union minister Jaswant Singh, a close associate of ex-Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, died here on Sunday following a long spell of illness. He was 82.

Jaswant Singh, who was from Rajasthan, had served as India’s foreign minister, defence minister and finance minister. Singh was an officer in the Indian Army in the 1950s and 60s, but he later resigned to pursue a career in politics. He was one of the longest serving parliamentarians in India.

Singh, a former Army officer, had been ill after a fall at his home in August 2014 and was admitted to the Army Research and Referral Hospital. He had been in and out of the hospital and was admitted again in June this year. In a statement, the Army hospital said, "Major Jaswant Singh (Retd), former Cabinet minister, passed away at 6:55 am today. He was admitted on 25 June & was being treated for Sepsis with Multiorgan Dysfunction Syndrome. He had a cardiac arrest this morning. His Covid status is negative."

The news of his death was tweeted by union defence minister Rajnath Singh.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020