Gujarat Assembly speaker Ashok Bhatt dies

AHMEDABAD - Gujarat Assembly speaker Ashok Bhatt died here Wednesday night following an illness, hospital sources said.

Bhatt, who had served many constitutional positions, was ailing for sometime and had been admitted to a private hospital since last one-and-a-half months.

His health condition deteriorated Wednesday and he had to be put on a life support system.

Bhatt was one of the oldest members of the state assembly, having being elected from Khadia constituency in Ahmedabad city for seven times. Bhatt passed away at 10.45 p.m.

Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who was in Mumbai attending a meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) as the president of the Gujarat Cricket Association, drove straight down to the hospital to inquire about Bhatt’s health on his return from Mumbai in the evening.