PM Modi Speaks To Arun Jaitley's Family; Wife & Son Insist Not To Cancel His Foreign Tour

Prime Minister Modi is in Abu Dhabi today, where he will receive the 'Order of Zayed' award. Jaitley's family insisted Modi to not cancel his tour.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is presently in United Arab Emirates, spoke to the family of former Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday after getting the news of the demise of the BJP stalwart. Expressing his condolences, Prime Minister spoke to Jaitley's wife Sangeeta Jaitley and son Rohan. Both of them insisted the Prime Minister to not cancel his three-nation tou Prime Minister Modi on Friday arrived in the UAE on the second leg of his three-nation tour to France, UAE and Bahrain. He will receive the 'Order of Zayed', today, the highest civilian decoration conferred by the UAE government. Both wife and son of Jaitley asked Prime Minister to not cancel his tour. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Modi expressed his grief over the demise of Jaitley on Twitter. In a series of tweet, Modi said that with Jaitley’s death he has lost a valued friend. “Arun Jaitley Ji was a political giant, towering intellectual and legal luminary. He was an articulate leader who made a lasting contribution to India. His passing away is very saddening. Spoke to his wife Sangeeta Ji as well as son Rohan, and expressed condolences. Om Shanti,” he tweeted. “Full of life, blessed with wit, a great sense of humour and charisma, Arun Jaitley Ji was admired by people across all sections of society. He was multi-faceted, having impeccable knowledge about India’s Constitution, history, public policy, governance and administration.” “During his long political career, Arun Jaitley Ji held multiple ministerial responsibilities, which enabled him to contribute towards India’s economic growth, strengthening our defence capabilities, creating people friendly laws and enhancing trade with other nations,” he said. “BJP and Arun Jaitley Ji had an unbreakable bond. As a fiery student leader, he was at forefront of protecting our democracy during the Emergency. He became a much liked face of our Party, who could articulate the Party programmes and ideology to a wide spectrum of society.” “With the demise of Arun Jaitley Ji, I have lost a valued friend, whom I have had the honour of knowing for decades. His insight on issues and nuanced understanding of matters had very few parallels. He lived well, leaving us all with innumerable happy memories. We will miss him!” said the Prime Minister in his last tweet.