Chandigarh: Former Punjab cabinet minister Bhagat Chunni Lal died Thursday at his residence in Jalandhar, his son and state Cabinet Minister Mohinder Bhagat announced. He was 93.

"Chunni Lal Bhagat ji is no longer with us. We are deeply saddened by his demise," said Mohinder Bhagat, who currently serves as Horticulture Minister in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) state government.

Final rites and cremation will be held in Jalandhar at 5 pm on Thursday.

The Punjab government announced a half-day public holiday across state offices in honour of the late politician.

Lal served as a cabinet minister in the previous Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (SAD-BJP) coalition administration in 2012, overseeing the portfolios of Local Government as well as Medical Education and Research under then Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal.

Born in Sialkot (now part of Pakistan) on 1 December 1932, Lal relocated with his family to Jalandhar following the partition of India in 1947.

He launched his political career as an Independent candidate from the Jalandhar South constituency in 1985, suffering an initial electoral setback before winning the seat on a BJP ticket in 1997.

Lal secured further legislative election victories in 2007 and 2012, contesting the latter campaign from Jalandhar West following constituency boundary realignments.

He also served as deputy speaker of the Punjab Legislative Assembly in 2011.

His son, Mohinder Bhagat, resigned from the BJP to join the AAP in April 2023.

PTI