An acclaimed intellectual: Kharge on demise of Natwar Singh

New Delhi, Aug 11: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday condoled the demise of former External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh.

Natwar Singh, 93, passed away on Saturday night after a prolonged illness, family sources said. He breathed his last at the Medanta Hospital in Gurugram, where he had been admitted for the past couple of weeks, they said.

Taking to microblogging site X, Kharge said, “Our deepest condolences on the passing away of former Union Minister, Shri K. Natwar Singh ji.”

“An acclaimed intellectual and a Padma Bhushan recipient, he made a profound contribution to India’s diplomacy and external affairs. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and followers,” he added.

Natwar Singh was born in 1931 in Bharatpur district of Rajasthan.

A former diplomat, Singh served as the External Affairs Minister in 2004-05 in the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government.

He was selected into the Indian Foreign Service in 1953, which he quit in 1984 when he contested from Bharatpur in Rajasthan on a Congress ticket and became a Lok Sabha MP.

In 1985, he was sworn in as a Minister of State (MoS) and allotted the portfolios of Steel, Coal and Mines, and Agriculture. In 1986, he became the Minister of State for External Affairs.

Singh was elected President of the UN Conference on Disarmament and Development held in New York in 1987 and also led the Indian delegation to the 42nd Session of the UN General Assembly.

He also served as ambassador to Pakistan and was attached to the office of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi from 1966 to 1971.

The veteran diplomat authored around a dozen books, including 'The Legacy of Nehru: A Memorial Tribute', 'Tales from Modern India', 'Treasured Epistles', and his autobiography 'One Life is Not Enough'.

His last rites would be performed in Delhi on Sunday, the sources said.