NEW DELHI: Veteran Congress leader and former Union home minister Shivraj Patil passed away at his home in Latur, Maharashtra. He was 90. Family members said he passed away on Friday after a brief illness, news agency PTI reported.Patil, one of the party’s most experienced parliamentarians, served in multiple key roles. He was a seven-time MP from Latur, a former Speaker of the Lok Sabha, and held several Union portfolios under Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and later in the UPA government. He served as the Union home minister from 2004 till 2008.His political journey began in Maharashtra, where he served as president of the Latur municipality in the late 1960s and later as an MLA, Deputy Speaker, and Speaker of the state Assembly. Over the years, he moved through national politics with ease, chairing committees, leading parliamentary groups and playing a prominent role in legislative affairs. He also served as Governor of Punjab and Administrator of Chandigarh from 2010 to 2015.Patil documented much of his public life in his autobiography, Odyssey of My Lifereflecting on issues ranging from education to technology and recounting major events such as the Kandahar hijack.
