Veteran Congress leader & former Odisha minister Sk Matlub Ali dies

Bhubaneswar, September 24 

Veteran Congress leader and former Odisha minister Sk Matlub Ali died on Thursday, family sources said. He was 78.

Ali was admitted to a private hospital here on September 7 after he complained of illness. He breathed his last while undergoing treatment at the hospital this morning, his son Masud Ali said.

He is survived by his wife and son.

Born on December 16, 1942, Matlub Ali was elected to the Odisha Assembly four times (1974, 1980, 1985, and 1995) from Mahanga constituency as a Congress candidate.

Ali was the Power and Irrigation, Rural Development and Higher Education minister in the J B Patnaik and Nandini Satpathy government.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Niranjan Patnaik and many politicians cutting across party lines expressed grief over Alis demise.

"I am saddened over the demise of Ali. My thoughts and prayer are with the bereaved family. May his soul rest in peace," the chief minister said in his twitter post.

 Senior Congress leader Panchanan Kanungo, also a close friend, said: "Matlub Babu had deep knowledge in Gita and Mahabharat apart from being an expert in Quran."   

Apart from politics, Ali was also associated with social work and worked for Oxfam and Save the Children Fund.

PTI