New Delhi: Arun Jaitley, the informally called scholar minister in political circles, passed away at the age of 66 on Saturday afternoon at New Delhi's All Indian Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) after a prolonged illness.  Jaitley was admitted to AIIMS on August 9, following complaints of breathlessness and restlessness. Jaitley was treated by a team of multi-disciplinary senior doctors and was of life support system from past few days. Jaitley did not contest the 2019 Lok Sabha election, because of his ill-health.

Soon after the news of this sad demise came to light, political leaders from across the country extended condolences and mourned the death of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stalwart leader. Not just Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah expressed grief on Jaitley's death, but even his political opponents from different parties including Congress, Trinamool Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and others expressed deep pain and distress at the passing away of Jaitley.

Some called Jaitley a nice friend and thanked him for his contributions, while others termed him as BJP's trouble shooter and original Chanakya in Modi's cabinet. Here are some top reactions and condolence messages shared by political leaders of the country:






















In May this year, Jaitley was admitted to AIIMS for treatment. He had undergone a renal transplant on May 14 last year at AIIMS with Railways Minister Piyush Goyal filling in for him in the finance ministry at that time. In September 2014, he underwent bariatric surgery to correct the weight he had gained because of a long-standing diabetic condition.