As former Union Minister Arun Jaitley passed away on August 24, Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia condoled the demise of the leader saying that it is a huge loss to the country. The senior BJP leader passed away at 12:07 hours at AIIMS after he was admitted to the hospital on August 9. Taking to Twitter, the Congress leader said that he had admired the BJP leader all through his life.

Expressing his grief on Arun Jaitley's demise, Scindia said that Jaitley was a brilliant lawyer and parliamentarian and that 'in him the nation has lost one of its leading lights.' Highlighting the personal bond with the leader, Scindia said that he has 'derived immense learning from him' and has 'lost a family member'. 

Scindia posted a picture of his interaction with the BJP leader along with his condolence message:

READ: Remembering Arun Jaitley: Read his most iconic speeches

CONGRESS CONDOLES JAITLEY'S DEMISE

Arun Jaitley's demise came as a sad news to all across the political spectrum. On the untimely demise of Arun Jaitley on August 24, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh condoled his death and wrote a letter to Arun Jaitley's family and extended his heartfelt condolences. Conveying that he was sad and shocked at hearing about the passing of Jaitley, Singh wrote that the country "has lost a great leader who always worked for the betterment of society." 

Congress issued a statement stating that they are deeply saddened to hear the passing of Arun Jaitley and that their thoughts and prayers are with his family in this time of grief. "We are deeply saddened to hear the passing of Shri Arun Jaitley. Our condolences to his family. Our thoughts and prayers are with them in this time of grief," Congress wrote.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi issued a statement condoling the demise of the BJP veteran. She said he will be remembered for his contribution to public life.

READ: Arun Jaitley passes away | Tributes pour in, UPDATES here

ARUN JAITLEY'S DEMISE

On August 24, AIIMS released a statement announcing the demise of the BJP leader. It said:

ARUN JAITLEY'S CAREER

Born in Delhi on December 28, 1952, Arun Jaitley studied at the St Xavier's school and went on to graduate with a degree in commerce from the Shri Ram College of Commerce in 1973, and went on to pursue an LLB at the Faculty of Law, University of Delhi. At that time, he is also said to have considered becoming a Chartered Accountant.

Active in politics since his time as a student, Jaitley was a member of the ABVP, and served as the President of the Delhi University Students Union in 1974. Like a number of his contemporaries in the BJP, Jaitley was put under preventive custody for fighting the Emergency as part of the JP movement, the clampdown on him lasting 19 months. 

READ: Read Manmohan Singh's condolence letter to Arun Jaitley's family

He rose to become the president of the Delhi ABVP and its All India Secretary, He became the president of the youth wing of the Jan Sangh which he had joined later.Parallel to his political commitments, Jaitley also practiced law, before the Supreme Court and numerous High Courts. He was appointed ASG in the VP Singh government in 1989, and has also appeared in several corporate matters. He stopped practicing law only in June 2009 on becoming leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha. In the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government, he had served as the minister for Law and Justice.

He is best known for having served as the Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs in the first Narendra Modi government, having also held portfolios of Defence and Information and Broadcasting. It was Jaitley who rolled out the GST in 2017 which saw India becoming a unified market for goods and services for the first time, and was also the first chairman of the GST council, being widely credited for forging consensus leading to the Constitutional amendment that eventually passed the GST Bill.
Jaitley opted out of the second Narendra Modi government, having gone to the US for two spells of treatment for a medical ailment in 2018-19. He has, however, regularly taken to Facebook and Twitter to pen blogs on various significant issues in the country.

READ: Former Union Minister Arun Jaitley passes away at AIIMS in New Delhi