Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan passed away today evening after battling health issues. His son Chirag Paswan took to Twitter to share the news.
The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader and Rajya Sabha member had recently underwent heart surgery in a Delhi hospital. On October 4th Chirag Paswan had tweeted informing that his father was undergoing treatment in hospital. “For the last many days dad is getting treated in a hospital. Due to some sudden developments on Saturday evening, an operation of his heart had to be conducted in the late night. If the need arises, then possibly after a few weeks another operation might be conducted. Thanks to all for standing by me and my family in this hour of struggle,” he had tweeted.
Ram Vilas Paswan was born in 1946 in Bihar, and have been a veteran in Bihar and Indian politics. He was Lok Sabha MP for eight terms, and had held the world record for winning an election with highest margin. He started his political career as member of Samyukta Socialist Party and was elected to the Bihar Legislative Assembly in 1969. Later, Paswan joined Lok Dal upon its formation in 1974, and became its general secretary. He was arrested during emergency.
After the emergency, he joined Janata Party and won the Lok Sabha election in 1977 from Hajipur. After he won the elections in 1980, 1989, 1996 and 1998, 1999, 2004, and 2014. In 2000, he formed the Lok Janshakti Party, and later joined the UPA government and became an union minister. In 2009 he had left the UPA and formed the fourth alliance with RJD and SP, and lost the Lok Sabha election in that year.
In 2014, the LJP joined the NDA ahead of the general elections, and Paswan became the minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. He continued with the same portfolio in the second Modi government.