Vilasrao Deshmukh, the man who had once famously said, 'I dream of turning Mumbai into a Shanghai' has died in hospital in Chennai today. Mr Deshmukh, Science and Technology Minister, had been diagnosed with liver cancer. He was flown by air ambulance from Mumbai to Chennai's Global Hospital last week for a liver transplant, but then went through multiple-organ failure. He was 67 and survived by his wife is Vaishali, and three sons, Amit Deshmukh who is a MLA of Latur city, Ritesh, who is a popular Bollywood actor and Dheeraj.. His body will be taken to Mumbai later tonight.
All celebrations for tomorrow's Independence Day like the President's at-home have been cancelled. The flag will be flown at half-mast. Both houses of Parliament were adjourned after news of Mr Deshmukh's death came in. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, "He was a senior Congress leader, a valued cabinet colleague and an able administrator. We will miss him in the government."
Mr Deshmukh made the incredible journey from a village Sarpanch to one of the big players in the power corridors of Delhi. The two-time Maharashtra Chief Minister was born in a family of landlords on May 26, 1945. After pursuing law from the Pune University, his first major political achievement came in 1974 when he became the Sarpanch of Babhalgaon in Latur District.
A successful stint with the Youth Congress propelled Mr Deshmukh to mainstream politics in 1980. Political experts said Mr Deshmukh's astute and thorough knowledge about Maharashtra helped him rise through the ranks quickly.
In 1999, the Congress leader became the Maharashtra Chief Minister. Four years later, Mr Deshmukh was forced to make way for Sushil Kumar Shinde, a prominent Dalit member of Congress and now the country's Home Minister, due to internal wrangling in the Maharashtra Congress. But, it was only a year before Mr Desmukh took back the top post in Maharashtra for his second term.
The 26/11 Mumbai attacks, however, cost Mr Deshmukh his post and began his slow phasing out of Maharashtra politics. Already facing heat over the shocking attacks, Mr Desmukh resigned after the public outrage he had caused by taking son and actor Riteish and director Ram Gopal Verma to inspect Mumbai's Taj Hotel, one of the many places the terrorists had targeted.
In the next few years, Mr Deshmukh got embroiled in several more controversies that hit the state. From allegations of land grab and attempts of shielding a politician's family from the police to the involvement in the Adarsh scam, the former chief minister's image took a badgering.
The only highpoint was his induction as a union minister and the appointment as the President of the prestigious Mumbai Cricket Association.
Before his untimely death, sources say Mr Deshmukh, who had been one of the stalwarts of Maharashtra politics over the years, was looking to return to the state, which has witnessed some intense infighting between allies the Congress and Sharad Pawar's NCP. Mr Deshmukh, known for his administrative skills and good relations cutting across party lines, may have seen an opportunity brewing.
In his long career as a politician, he held portfolios like Science and Technology, Home, General Administration, Cooperation, Public Works, Transport, Legislative Affairs, Tourism, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development Fisheries, Industry, Rural Development, Education, Technical Education, Sports and Youth Welfare.
