Vilasrao Deshmukh dies of multiple organ failure

OBITUARY\\ Union Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, Vilasrao Deshmukh, who was suffering from liver and kidney ailments, died at a Chennai hospital in August. Deshmukh died of multiple organ failure. His funeral took place in Babhalgaon village in Latur. Deshmukh is survived by wife Vaishali Deshmukh and three sons—one of them, Reitesh Deshmukh, a successful actor in the Hindi film industry. Deshmukh was admitted to Chennai’s Global Hospital. Doctors were planning for a liver transplant. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pranab Mukherjee expressed their grief at Deshmukh’s death. UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi said it was a great loss to the party. Bollywood celebrities also mourned Deshmukh’s demise and paid their last respects. The former Maharashtra chief minister was showing signs of improvement and had been on and off the ventilator, while he was being prepared for a transplant. Deshmukh had been shifted to Chennai from Mumbai in an air ambulance in a critical condition. Born on May 26, 1945, at Babhalgaon in Latur district of Maharashtra, he was the strongest Maratha leader in the Congress.