Sharad Pawar mourns D P Tripathi's death, dubs it as personal loss

NCP chief Sharad Pawar and other party leaders on Thursday condoled the death of their senior colleague and former Rajya Sabha member D P Tripathi, describing him as a mentor and "perfect blend of diligence and intelligence in politics". Tripathi, 67, died in New Delhi on Thursday after a prolonged illness. Pawar said Tripathi was with the NCP since its inception and the leader's death was a personal loss for him.

"Saddened to hear about the demise of our NCP General Secretary Shri D. P. Tripathi ji. He was a scholar and a perfect blend of diligence and intelligence in politics. A firm voice who took a stand for my party as a Spokesperson and General Secretary," Pawar tweeted. Tripathi was with the party right from its establishment in 1999, he said, adding that the latter played a "very important" role at the national level. "His demise is a personal loss to me. May his soul rest in peace!" the NCP chief added. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar also took to Twitter to mourn Tripathi's demise."Deeply mourn the sad demise of Shri. D. P. Tripathi ji, an esteemed Senior Leader & the General Secretary of @NCPspeaks. My condolences to his family. May his soul rest in peace," he said.

NCP's Rajya Sabha member Praful Patel expressed shock over Tripathi's demise and said he will never be forgotten. NCP Lok Sabha member Supriya Sule described Tripathi as a "guide and mentor" for all party workers. "Deeply saddened to hear about the demise of Shri.D. P Tripathi Ji. He was the General Secretary of @NCPspeaks and a guide and mentor to all of us. We will miss his wise counsel and guidance which he had given us from the day NCP was established," she tweeted.

Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal said Tripathi's demise has "created a vacuum that cannot be filled again", and caused a big loss to the party. "The NCP has lost a senior mentor forever," Bhujbal tweeted. NCP chief spokesperson and Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik also condoled Tripathi's demise, saying the former Rajya Sabha member had made valuable contribution towards expansion of the party's base. Tripathi, the general secretary of the NCP and a former students' union leader, was battling cancer.