Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief on the loss of former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and hailed the former Union Minister for his glorious political career. Former Finance Minster Arun Jaitley was associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party since 1991 and has held several key positions including the Finance portfolio in the Narendera Modi-led NDA government in 2014. PM Modi called Arun Jaitley's demise as a personal loss and said that the former Finance Minister was a great advisor, leader and a friend. Arun Jaitley's unfortunate demise marks the end of an extraordinary career that has witnessed him holding incredibly important positions at various levels, both in the government and outside.

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BJP and Arun Jaitley an unbreakable bond, says PM Modi 

PM Modi termed the bond shared between late former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as an unbreakable one. PM Modi spoke to Arun Jaitley's wife and son and expressed his condolences at the former Union Minister's demise. PM Modi recalled the days when young Arun Jaitley was a fierce student leader and his role inm protecting the democracy during the Emergency. PM Modi said that Arun Jaitley became a popular face of the Party who could articulate the Party's ideologies to all levels of the society. Read PM Modi's tweet here:

READ | PM Modi pays tribute to Arun Jaitley, says he was a 'political giant'

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

Senior BJP leader held several important portfolios

Arun Jaitley’s political career spanned multiple decades and tenures. In the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led government, Mr Jaitley held the portfolios of Information and Broadcasting while simultaneously holding Independent Charge of the Department of Disinvestment and going on to hold the Ministry of Law, Justice and Company Affairs and then the Ministry of Shipping. In the Narendra Modi-led government, Jaitley came to be a centrepiece and was the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, of Corporate Affairs and held the all-important Ministries of Finance and Defence. The veteran BJP politician was also leader of the house in the Rajya Sabha since the Modi government came into office and had been a member of the upper house from Gujarat since 2000.

READ | Arun Jaitley passes away: A look back at his glorious political career