Rahul Gandhi pays tribute to Atal Bihari Vajpayee at his residence

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Friday paid tribute to the mortal remains of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at his residence in Delhi.

Minutes after Vajpayee's death shocked the nation, Rahul Gandhi on Thursday took to Twitter and said, "Former PM Atal Bihari Vaajpayee ji, was loved and respected by millions. My condolences to his family and all his admirers. We will miss him."

The 93-year-old Vajpayee breathed his last at 5:05 pm here on Thursday after prolonged illness.

Announcing the demise, All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) in a press release wrote, "Shri Vajpayee was admitted in AIIMS on 11.06.2018 and was stable in the last nine weeks under the care of a team of AIIMS doctors. Unfortunately, his condition deteriorated over the last 36 hours and he was put on life support systems. Despite the best of efforts, we have lost him."

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi also visited Vajpayee's residence last night to pay her tribute to the BJP veteran.

Vajpayee, who was the country's 10th Prime Minister, will be laid to rest at the Smriti Sthal. The Central and all state governments have declared a seven-day holiday to mourn his demise.