Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav dies at 82

Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav has died at 82 after a prolonged spell of illness. He was being treated at Gurugram’s Medanta Hospital.

The veteran leader had served as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. He had also served as India’s defence minister.

“My respected father has passed away,” SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, his son, was quoted as saying in a party statement.

Tributes started pouring in soon after the news of his death broke. “The death of Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav, who was also India’s former defence minister, is a huge loss to Indian politics. May god grant peace to his soul, and give strength to his family members,” the Congress wrote on its official Twitter handle.