Former Chief Election Commissioner of India, Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan passed away at his residence in Chennai on Sunday night. Seshan suffered a cardiac arrest, his family said. He was 86.
Born in Palakkad district of Kerala, the 1955-batch IAS officer served as the 10th CEC of India between 1990 and 1996.
Seshan has been credited for several electoral reforms that brought an end to malpractices and brought transparency. His reforms by and large changed the face of Indian elections.
Known for enforcing Model Code of Conduct, Seshan took stern action against any politician who tried to flout its provisions.
He won the Ramon Magsaysay Award for government service in 1996. After retiring as the CEC, he contested to be the President of India in 1997 but lost to KR Narayanan.
Seshan's successor SY Quraishi took to Twitter to announce the news of his death. "Sad to announce that Shri TN Seshan passed away a short while ago. He was a true legend and a guiding force for all his successors. I pray for peace to his soul, he wrote.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi too took to the microblogging site to express his condolences.
"Shri TN Seshan was an outstanding civil servant. He served India with utmost diligence and integrity. His efforts towards electoral reforms have made our democracy stronger and more participative. Pained by his demise. Om Shanti," Modi wrote.
The cremation is said to be planned on Monday afternoon at Besant Nagar crematorium.