Sr Congress leader Makhan Lal Fotedar, 85, passes away

New Delhi, Sept 28: Veteran Congressman and a close aide of erstwhile Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Makhan Lal Fotedar passed away in Gurugram on Thursday after a brief illness, party sources said . Fotedar, 85, was staying at Gurugram with his family. Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi condoled the death. Expressing her deepest condolences on the passing away of the former Union Minister, Mrs Gandhi said,'In his long and active political career spanning over five decades, Fotedar tirelessly fought for the rights of people and served them with utmost integrity.' 'Shri Fotedar was one of the guiding lights for the Congress party and has left behind a void which can never be filled, ' Ms Gandhi added. The Congress chief offered her prayers for the departed soul and conveyed her sympathies to his family and friends. In his condolence message, Mr Rahul Gandhi said,'Fotedar ji was a pillar of strength in the Congress party. His demise is a big loss to us. My condolences to his family in this hour of grief.' A leader of the Kashmiri Pandits, Fotedar was a close associate of late prime minister Indira Gandhi, and from 1980 to 1984, served as her political secretary. Before joining the Union Cabinet, Fotedar also served as Rajiv Gandhi’s political secretary for three years. A cabinet minister in the government of Jammu and Kashmir, the ex-Member of Parliament, was a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee. The author of a book ‘The Chinar Leaves’, Fotedar is survived by three sons and two daughters. UNI