Editors Guild mourns Vinod Mehta's death

The Editors Guild of India on Sunday condoled the death of senior journalist Vinod Mehta.

"In the passing of Vinod Mehta, the media world has lost a liberal, independent voice and the world of public discourse in India a reflective contributor who spoke his mind without rancour or fear," it said in a statement here.

The veteran journalist, who built up several publications, including Outlook magazine, was a mentor and guide to scores of journalists.

"Gentle in manner and speech, yet firm in his views, he maintained a scrupulous distance and independence from political leaders and parties and was held in great respect by all in media, politics, industry and academia," it said.

"The Editors Guild of India, of which he had been president, will miss his wise counsel and guiding hand, and the media and the public policy worlds his thoughtful and perceptive observations."

The 73-year-old Mehta died of multiple organ failure on Sunday at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here. He had been bed-ridden for the past three-four months and was admitted to AIIMS in a critical state last week.