VELLORE: Veteran parliamentarian Era Sezhiyan died here today following old age, sources close to the leader said.
A respected parliamentarian, 94-year-old Sezhiyan was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1962 on a DMK ticket, representing Perambalur constituency.
He later represented Kumbakonam in the fourth and fifth Lok Sabha.
In 1978 he was elected to the Rajya Sabha on a Janata party ticket.
He had quit active politics in 2001.
For the past few years, he was a guest speaker at a reputed private technical education institution in this district.
Political leaders, including DMK Working President MK Stalin and Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan, expressed grief over the veteran leader's demise.
Stalin hailed Sezhiyan's firm belief in democractic principles and recalled the latter's association with the late Jayaprakash Narayan in his struggle against Emergency.
Stalin pointed out that Sezhiyan had compiled and edited a book called "Shah Commission Report: Lost and Regained" on Emergency.
"Sezhiyan's demise is a big loss to Tamil Nadu and Dravidian movement," he said in a statement.
Radhakrishnan expressed shock over Sezhiyan's death.
TNCC President Su.Thirunavukkarasar, MDMK leader Vaiko, PMK founder S Ramadoss and state secretaries of CPI (M) and CPI, G Ramakrishnan and R Mutharasan, condoled Sezhiyan's death.