Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Madhya Pradesh Assembly Speaker Ishwardas Rohani died following cardiac arrest in Jabalpur on Tuesday.
Mr. Rohani, 67, complained of chest pain and fainted during a meeting with party workers at his residence in Civil Lines. He was declared dead on reaching hospital at noon.
Born in Karachi in 1946, Mr. Rohani migrated with his family to Jabalpur during Partition, a year later. He joined the Bharatiya Jan Sangh in 1965 and was elected to the Jabalpur Municipal Corporation in 1973. He was detained under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act during the Emergency.
Mr. Rohani had represented Jabalpur Cantonment in the Assembly since 1993, winning elections with huge margins every time. He was elected Deputy Speaker in 1998 and he served as Speaker from 2003. He was renominated to contest the November 25 Assembly elections, for the fifth time.