'Grassroots leader': Ex-CM died in crash

Seat 2D of the ill-fated Air India flight to London that crashed 33 seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport was occupied by the state's former chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Vijay Rupani.

- Smriti Kak Ramachandran

NEW DELHI: Seat 2D of the ill-fated Air India flight to London that crashed 33 seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport was occupied by the state's former chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Vijay Rupani.

For hours after that, his aides were searching for him, at the site of the crash and the hospital. The emergence of a survivor late in the afternoon raised everyone's hopes. But early in the evening, Union minister and his party colleague C.R. Paatil announced that Rupani, 68, did not survive the crash.

Expressing grief, President Droupadi Murmu posted on X, "The country has lost the former chief minister of Gujarat, Vijay Rupani Ji in the tragedy. I express my heartfelt condolences to his family and admirers."

Expressing his condolence, defence minister Rajnath Singh posted on X, "Deeply pained by the tragic demise of former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani ji in the unfortunate plane crash in Ahmedabad. He will be remembered as a grassroots leader who devoted his life for the development & welfare of his state. Condolences to his bereaved family."

"The news of the demise of former Gujarat Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Shri Vijay Rupani ji in the unfortunate plane crash in Ahmedabad is extremely painful and shocking. This is an irreparable loss not only for Gujarat but also for Indian politics," Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami posted on X.

It was an abrupt end to a career that many thought still had a third act to come. The second act was one that propelled him into national spotlight.