MANGALURU: Former
union minister and Rajya Sabha member
Oscar Fernandes died at a private
hospital in
Mangaluru on Monday. He was 80.
Fernandes sustained injuries after he had an accidental fall while doing his regular exercise and was admitted to Yenepoya Hospital here on July 19.
The veteran
Congress leader had lost balance while doing wall push-ups and hit against the wall. It was discovered that he had a clot in the brain, after he went to the hospital where he was undergoing dialysis.
He had informed the doctor that he had been getting frequent headaches after the said fall. Medical examinations detected a clot in his brain, sources close to his family said.
Fernandes was the Union minister for transport, road and highways and labour and employment in the UPA government. A well-respected politician,
Fernandes shared close proximity with top Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.
Apart from becoming a minister for the very first time in the UPA-II government, Fernandes held many key posts in the Manmohan Singh-led government and in the party. Being an AICC general secretary in the UPA government was also a major career leap for him.
Fernandes, born on March 27, 1941, in Udupi district, was one of the 12 children born to his parents Roque Fernandes and Leonissa M Fernandes. Married to Blossom Fernandes, he has two children - a son and a daughter.
He studied at Cecilia’s Convent, MGM College in Udupi and graduated in arts.