Condolences poured in from all political quarters on the demise of Union Minister Ananth Kumar, who passed away today at his Bengaluru residence. Kumar, 59, was battling cancer for some time now.

He held charge in two key ministries- Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers since May 2014 and as Minister of Parliamentary Affairs since July 2016 in the Narendra Modi government. He has represented Bengaluru South constituency in the Lok Sabha since 1996. PM Modi is likely to visit Bengaluru today at 10:30 am.

The Union minister had previously undergone extensive treatment in London and New York, but had returned to bengaluru in October, where he was admitted to a private hospital. He is survived by wife Tejaswini and two daughter--Aishwarya and Vijeta.

Ananth Kumar completed his graduation in faculty of Arts (B.A) from KS Arts College, Hubli affiliated to the Karnataka University. He later completed his Bachelors in Law (BA LLB) from JSS Law College affiliated to the Karnataka University.