Veteran Bihar politician and ex-RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh – he submitted his resignation on Friday – died Sunday morning at AIIMS in Delhi. He was 74 years old.
Mr Singh tested positive for COVID-19 in June after which he was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Patna. He was re-admitted to AIIMS in Delhi, where he was being treated for post-COVID complications.
His condition deteriorated rapidly over the past two days and he was placed on a ventilator. He died at around 11 AM after complaining of breathlessness, according to news agency PTI.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who this morning was speaking at the launch of petroleum projects in Bihar, began his speech by paying tribute to Mr Singh. “Raghuvansh Prasad Singh is no more among us. His demise has left a void in the political sphere of Bihar as well as the country,” the Prime Minister said.
This morning, shortly after Mr Singh’s death was confirmed, an anguished Lalu Prasad Yadav tweeted: “Dear Raghuvansh babu! What did you do? I told you the day before yesterday, you are not going anywhere. But you went so far. I am speechless. I am sad. Will miss you very much.” Mr Singh’s letter of resignation came months before Assembly polls are due in Bihar.
A politician of nearly four decades, Raghuvansh Prasad Singh was widely regarded as an expert in the rural and agricultural landscape of the country and is credited with the conceptualisation and implementation of the NREGA (National Rural Guarantee Employment) Act.
