Samajwadi Party MP Virendra Bhatia passes away

Virendra Bhatia

Rajya Sabha member Virendra Bhatia of the Samajwadi Party (SP) died in a hospital here today after a brief illness.

He was 63. He is survived by his wife and a son and a daughter. The funeral will be held in Lucknow tomorrow, party sources said.

Mr Bhatia, a former Advocate General of Uttar Pradesh during SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav's tenure as Chief Minister. He was elected to the Upper House of Parliament on April 3, 2006 and, in the normal course, his term would have ended on April 2, 2012.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh condoled the death of Mr Bhatia, saying that he had worked against the odds to make his mark as a leading lawyer who was committed to the cause of social justice and worked actively for equal opportunities for all communities.

NNN