Freedom fighter and Congress leader Dr Raghunath Rao Paprikar passed away at a private hospital in Gwalior following a prolonged illness, family sources said on Tuesday.
He was over 100 years old, they said adding that he breathed his last on Monday night.
Paprikar is survived by two sons and three daughters.
According to Congress sources, Paprikar was the oldest Congressman in Gwalior and had served as the party’s city unit chief for over twelve years. He had also served as the city Mayor in the 1960s.
Expressing grief over the death, Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Narendra Singh Tomar said, “We have lost a leader who was a fatherly figure and who always guided us in different fields.”
Tomar lauded him for his role in the development of Gwalior city and his services for the downtrodden, which he said is an “example” for the people to follow. People cutting across the party lines paid their last respects to him. The last rites were performed in Gwalior.