Pranab Mukherjee passes away: Akshay Kumar, Kangana Ranaut, & others pay tribute

A thorough gentleman and a great statesman is how film personalities, including Kangana Ranaut, Akshay Kumar, Anushka Sharma, Vicky Kaushal, Sara Ali Khan, Arjun Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha, Parineeti Chopra, Madhuri Dixit, and many others remembered former president Pranab Mukherjee, who passed away on Monday at the age of 84.

Mukherjee was admitted to the Army Research and Referral hospital in New Delhi on August 10. He was operated the same day for the removal of a clot in his brain. He later developed a lung infection.

A health bulletin this morning said Mukherjee was in a deep coma and on ventilator support. Mukherjee's son, Abhijit, broke the news of his father's passing away in the evening.

Mourning the former president's demise, Madhuri Dixit wrote, "A statesman par excellence! My heartfelt condolences to the friends & family grieving the loss of one of our finest leaders, Shri #PranabMukherjee. May he rest in peace." [sic] Rakul Preet Singh wrote, “Deeply saddened by the passing away of former president Shri Pranab Mukherjee! My condolences to his family . Yet another Loss in 2020. #RIP" [sic]

Pranab Mukherjee passes away 

Former President Pranab Mukherjee passed away on Monday after being put in a coma post a successful brain surgery at Army Hospital (R&R) in New Delhi. The news was confirmed by his son - Abhijit Mukherjee, who thanked the hospital staff and doctors for their efforts. The 84-year-old was hospitalised on August 10 to undergo brain surgery for the removal of a clot and had tested positive for Coronavirus (COVID-19).

The seven-time parliamentarian had worked as a teacher and journalist before taking a leap into politics. Mukherjee belonged to the Congress party and held several significant portfolios in the Union Cabinet including finance, commerce, external affairs and defence under the Congress regime. A nominee of the Congress-led UPA coalition, Mukherjee was elected to the Rashtrapati Bhavan in 2012 and left the Presidency in 2017. In January 2019, Mukherjee was named for the country’s highest civilian award Bharat Ratna by PM Modi.