Maha BJP MLA Laxman Jagtap Has Passed Away After a Battle with Cancer. Chief Minister Shinde and Other Leaders Have Expressed Their Grief.

Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis arrived at the residence of MLA Laxman Jagtap in Pimple Gurav to pay his respects to the late leader.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde expressed sadness at the demise of Jagtap and stated that he had consistently worked towards improving his constituency.

Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Laxman Jagtap passed away at the age of 59 on Tuesday after a battle with cancer, according to sources. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde described Jagtap's death as "mind-numbing", while Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis referred to it as "heart-wrenching".

Jagtap, the legislator from Chinchwad in Pune, had been receiving treatment for an extended period of time, according to a family member. He passed away at a private hospital in the city, sources said. 

The BJP has lost two MLAs from the state in the past two weeks. On December 22, party legislator Mukta Tilak from the Kasba seat in Pune also passed away.

Jagtap was a three-time MLA from the Chinchwad Assembly seat. Despite his illness, he traveled from Pune to Mumbai to vote in the Rajya Sabha and Maharashtra Legislative Council elections in June of last year, earning praise in political circles. 

Chief Minister Shinde expressed sadness at Jagtap's passing and stated that he had consistently worked towards improving his constituency. Shinde described Jagtap's death as 'mind-numbing'.

Senior BJP leader Fadnavis also expressed his condolences and remembered how Jagtap came to the state legislature wearing a PPE kit to vote in the Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council elections last year.

Jagtap and Tilak had been praised for casting their votes despite their poor health. The BJP had taken a seat each from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi in both of these elections.

Fadnavis stated, 'The party has suffered a great loss with Jagtap's passing. As a mayor and MLA, he made significant contributions to the development process. The news of Laxmanbhau Jagtap's death is very sad and heart-wrenching. I offer my humble respects to him. I pray to God to give his family, loved ones, and friends the strength to bear this suffering.'

Maharashtra cabinet minister Chandrakant Patil, who is also the guardian minister of Pune, stated that this is the second unfortunate news for the party in 15 days. He said, 'After Tilak's death, this is the second shock for all BJP workers. We all live like a family and the passing away of Jagtap is like losing a family member.'

Jagtap fought a serious illness such as cancer with determination, but according to Patil, his condition became critical a month ago. Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Ajit Pawar also expressed sadness at the death of Jagtap and mentioned that as a public representative, he worked diligently to address the concerns of the people.

Pawar stated that Jagtap's work in politics and social life will always be remembered and that he made significant contributions to the development of Pimpri-Chinchwad city.