A former Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh, has reportedly died after battling some illness.
Naija News reports that the deceased, whose economic reforms are believed to have transformed his nation into a global powerhouse, passed away at 92.
Singh, who served from 2004 to 2014, is recognized for managing an economic surge in Asia’s fourth-largest economy during his initial term.
However, a decline in growth during his second term overshadowed his achievements.
Reports according to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences stated that Singh was admitted to a hospital in New Delhi after losing consciousness at his residence on Thursday, but efforts to revive him were unsuccessful, and he was subsequently declared dead.
India “grieves the loss of one of its most esteemed leaders,” the incumbent Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, shared via his official social handle on Thursday morning shortly after the news of Singh’s death emerged.
“As our Prime Minister, he made extensive efforts to improve people’s lives,” Modi wrote on X.
“I have lost a mentor and guide,” opposition Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said in a statement, adding that Singh had “led India with immense wisdom and integrity”.
“Millions of us who admired him will remember him with the utmost pride,” said Gandhi, a scion of India’s powerful Nehru-Gandhi dynasty and the most prominent challenger to Modi.
Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of the opposition in parliament’s upper house, said, “India has lost a visionary statesman, a leader of unimpeachable integrity, and an economist of unparalleled stature.”
President Droupadi Murmu wrote on X that Singh will “always be remembered for his service to the nation, his unblemished political life and his utmost humility”.