VHP leader Kesavram Sastry passes away

Ahmedabad, Sep 9 (UNI) Well known Gujarati litterateur and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) chief of Gujarat unit Kesavram Kashiram Sastry, popularly known as K Ka Sastry, died here today.

Sastry who was 102-year-old, died at 1545 hrs at his residence.

He was ailing for some time and was discharged from a local hospital seven days ago. He had lost his wife eight years ago.

''Two days ago he was his normal self and seemed healthy, except for his old age disability,'' general secretary of the Gujarat unit of VHP Kaushik Patel said.

He was the only surviving founder member of the VHP formed in 1964. He remained its state unit president until his death.

A glorious moment in his life came when Lal Bahadur University (UP) bestowed the highest honour for Sanskrit literature a year ago with the 'Mahamahopadhyay' title. He was also awarded the Padma Shri and had written over 240 Gujarati 'granths' and over 1,500 research articles. He also has to his credit over 39 Sahitya awards, said Mr Patel.

One of the VHP cadre recalled that Sastryji often used to say, ''I can leave anything but not the VHP.'' In a letter written five months ago to Kaushikbhai, Sastry had expressed his last wish that he should be taken to the Vyapari Mahajan Hall gate and allow his body to rest at the gate for five minutes and then taken to HK Commerce College and finally to the VHP headquarters at Paldi before being cremated.

His body will be taken out of his residence 'Madhuvan' at Ellisbridge at about 1800 hrs to the VHP office at Paldi before being taken to the VS cremation ground later in the evening. The last rites would be performed by his eldest son Shamubhai.

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