Arun Jaitley

The BJP government has once again recommended to the president names of many commoners with extraordinary records for the Padma Shri award

India's most reputed criminal lawyer Ram Jethmalani defended the accused in some of the most difficult and high-profile cases including in the assassinations of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi

Modi described Jaitley as a "political giant, towering intellectual and legal luminary", who made a lasting contribution to India

Jaitley, who as finance minister piloted India's biggest tax reform and flagship schemes like Jan Dhan, was the chief trouble-shooter of the BJP and the Modi government

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said in a tweet, "I am sorry to hear about Mr Arun Jaitley's passing. My condolences to his family and friends. May he rest in peace."