Anguished by passing away of Chopra: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday condoled the demise of Ashwini Chopra, a former BJP MP and resident editor of Hindi daily Punjab Kesari.

"Anguished by the passing away of Shri Ashwini Kumar ChopraJi. He will be remembered for his contribution to the media world. He worked diligently as a public representative and undertook many community welfare initiatives. My thoughts are with his family and friends. Om Shanti," Modi tweeted.

Chopra passed away in Gurugram on Saturday, his family confirmed.

His son Akash Chopra told that the former Lok Sabha MP from Karnal was suffering from cancer.

"About 1.5 years ago he was diagnosed with cancer. The treatment was going on. The medicines had stopped working. He passed away on Saturday at 11.40 a.m. at Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon," he told .

Ashwini Chopra, born in 1956, was a senior journalist. He was elected to the 16th Lok Sabha from Karnal in Haryana as a BJP candidate. Prior to entering journalism full-time, he played under the name of Ashwini Minna for Punjab in the Ranji Trophy.

He is survived by his wife, Kiran Chopra, and three sons Arjun, Akash and Aditya Chopra.

The cremation will take place at Nigambodh Ghat in New Delhi at 10 a.m. on Sunday, according to the family.

During the days of terrorism in Punjab, his grandfather Lala Jagat Narain and father Romesh Chander were assassinated in 1981 and 1984 respectively.

( With inputs from IANS )