Governor Murlidhar Chandrakant Bhandare has mourned the death of Union Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.
“He proved his mettle during his political career which was cut short due to the unfortunate illness,” Bhandare said in a message. Describing him as an efficient leader, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said that he had undertaken different developmental programmes both as the chief minister of Maharashtra and as a Union minister. Stating that Deshmukh was popular cutting across party lines, Naveen said his death is a national loss.
Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh said that Deshmukh was known for his progressive thinking and political aggressiveness, not compromising with his morals.