E Ahamed passes away

New Delhi: Former Union minister and Indian Union Muslim League leader E Ahamed has passed away early Wednesday after he suffered a cardiac arrest, a senior doctor has confirmed.

The 78-year-old Ahamed died at 2:15 am at RML hospital where he was admitted yesterday and put on artificial life support.

"E Ahamed has passed away at 2:15 am. His body has been taken to AIIMS hospital for embalming (a method to preserve a corpse from decaying) as the facility is not available at RML," a senior RML doctor told PTI.

Ahamed's body will be taken to Kerala later Wednesday.

The MP from Kerala's Mallapuram suffered a cardiac arrest during the President's address to the joint sitting of Parliament Tuesday.

At around 2.15 PM, he was shifted to the RML trauma centre's ICU where he was put on ventilator and breathed his last.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi, party vice president Rahul Gandhi, leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, besides other party leaders had rushed to the hospital late at night and met Ahamed's family.

Ahamed's family had alleged that they were not allowed to meet the leader.