Former Union minister Shantaram Potdukhe passes away

NAGPUR: Former Union minister and Congress leader Shantaram Potdukhe died at a hospital here on Sunday following brief illness, his family said.
He was 86 and is survived by his wife, son and a daughter. His last rites will be performed in Chandrapur on Monday.
The four-time MP from Chandrapur in eastern Maharashtra was being treated at a private hospital here since September 13, and died of multi-organ failure at 3.30 pm Sunday, the family said.
Potdukhe was a Union minister of state for finance in the Narasimha Rao-led government.
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis condoled Potdukhe's death, saying he played a key role in development of educational institutes in Chandrapur and Gadchiroli districts.
"We have lost a prominent leader who played an important role in development of Vidarbha," he said.
State Congress chief Ashok Chavan said Potdukhe always remained loyal to the party ideology and made a great contribution in development of Chandrapur and Gadchiroli.
Senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil also condoled Potdukhe's death.