Mumbai, Dec 20 (UNI) Senior Congress leader, former union minister and ex-member of Parliament Shalinitai Patil passed away at her residence in the city.
She had been unwell for the past few months and breathed her last yesterday at her residence in the Mahim area of Mumbai, family sources said.
She was 94.
Her last rites will be performed at her native village in Koregaon taluka of Satara district. Her demise has plunged the Congress party and the state’s political circles into deep mourning, with leaders across party lines expressing grief over the loss.
Shalinitai Patil, wife of former Maharashtra Chief Minister Vasantdada Patil, actively entered politics after her marriage and remained a prominent figure in Maharashtra’s public life. She served as a minister in the Congress government during the 1980s and played a notable role during the political developments that led to the resignation of then Chief Minister Abdul Rahman Antulay in 1981.
She represented the Sangli Lok Sabha constituency as a Member of Parliament and later served as a Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from the Koregaon constituency in Satara district between 1999 and 2009. Earlier, she had contested the 1990 elections on a Janata Dal ticket and later fought the 1995 assembly polls as an independent candidate.
Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) president Sharad Pawar expressed deep sorrow over her passing.
In his condolence message, Pawar said he was shocked by the demise of former cabinet minister and MP Shalinitai Patil, describing her as a fearless voice who never hesitated to express her views. He recalled her as a distinguished orator, legal scholar and committed public representative who consistently conveyed the political ideals and message of Vasantdada Patil to her colleagues.
Tributes have continued to pour in from Congress leaders, allies and admirers, remembering Shalinitai Patil as a strong-willed leader, articulate speaker and respected figure in Maharashtra’s political history.
Former minister & MP Shalini Patil dies in Mumbai
