>Union Rural Development Minister Gopinath Munde died of multiple internal injuries and cardiac arrest suffered following a road accident here on Tuesday morning.

Sixty-four-year-old Munde, who was seen as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s face for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections, is survived by wife and three daughters, one of whom is an MLA.

A spokesperson of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences said Munde was brought to the Trauma Centre at 6.30 am by his personal assistant and driver. The former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister was sitting in the rear of his car when it was hit by another car.

“On his arrival at the Trauma Centre, there was no spontaneous breathing, no blood pressure, no pulse, no cardiac activity. So immediately Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) was started and continued for the next 15 minutes. Despite resuscitative measures, Munde could not be revived and was declared dead at 7:20 am,” the spokesperson said. He added that Munde was hypertensive and a diabetic and there were no external injuries on his body.

Munde had played a key role in the BJP’s win in the Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra. It was widely expected that the party would project him as the Chief Ministerial candidate in the Assembly elections later this year.

Leaders mourn death President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed shock at the untimely death of Munde.

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