MUMBAI: A popular misquote attributed to Mark Twain states: The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.
On Friday, it was the turn of former Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan (78) to announce that she is very much alive.
Her 'clarification' came after Congress leader Shashi Tharoor and some media outlets Thursday night announced the demise of Mahajan.
Tharoor and others deleted the tweets after BJP leaders pointed out that she was hale and hearty.
"What should I do? These people carried the news without any confirmation. They should have at least confirmed with the district administration in Indore," Mahajan is heard saying in an audio clip.
"The Central government and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla should take note of this," the BJP veteran says in the clip.
"This became all-India news. I started getting calls from my relatives in Mumbai. My brother's daughter responded to Tharoor's tweet asking who gave him this fake news."
Mahajan also wondered why some Mumbai news channels, in particular, flashed the fake news of her demise.
After deleting the tweet, Tharoor had said he was relieved that Mahajan is doing fine and said he banked on "a reliable source" in putting out his tweet.
The former Lok Sabha speaker's son Mandar put out a video clip Thursday night, saying his mother is perfectly fine and asked people not to believe the false news about her.
Mahajan was the Lok Sabha Speaker from 2014 to 2019.
She earlier represented the Indore Lok Sabha constituency in Parliament for eight terms.