Newly elected BJP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Gasti dies of Covid-19 in Bengaluru

Ashok Gasti, a BJP Rajya Sabha MP from Karnataka, died of the deadly coronavirus today, just months after he was nominated to the upper house.

The 55-year-old was from Raichur in north Karnataka and was previously a booth-level worker.

After his election in June this year, Mr Gasti did not get a chance to attend Parliament due to the pandemic. He was a first-time Rajya Sabha member.

At the time of his nomination, Mr Gasti had told NDTV, "This is a very happy event. A booth level worker has been recognised like this. This kind of recognition is possible only in the BJP. This has given a lot of enthusiasm to lakhs of BJP workers. I want to thank all the BJP leaders."