Parliament adjourned after tributes to Jayalalithaa

Both houses of Parliament were adjourned for the day on Tuesday soon after members paid tributes to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, who passed away late on Monday night.

Members in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha observed a minute's silence as a mark of respect to the departed AIADMK leader. Both the houses were then adjourned without conducting any business.

In her obituary reference, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan remembered Jayalalithaa as a "popular and eminent leader".

In the Rajya Sabha, Chairman Mohmmad Hamid Ansari read out an obituary reference for the iconic AIADMK leader and described her as an "accomplished and prolific artiste who contributed immensely to the film industry".

He said the AIADMK leader was an "imminent public figure and a charismatic personality", and her work will be remembered for a long time.

In her death the country has lost a prominent leader, a distinguished parliamentarian and an able administrator, Ansari said.

Ansari dubbed her death "an irreparable loss to India".

Jayalalithaa was declared dead at a hospital in Chennai at 11.30 p.m. on Monday after suffering a cardiac arrest earlier on Sunday. She was 68.

--IANS

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