New Delhi, Oct 9  Expressing grief on the demise of Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, veteran BJP leader L K Advani on Thursday said he was a grassroots leader who championed the cause of the upliftment of poor and downtrodden.
Paswan, the veteran Dalit leader, died on Thursday at the age of 74 at a private hospital here where he had recently undergone a heart operation.

Recalling Paswan, who was his Cabinet colleague in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led government, Advani said the Lok Janshakti Party founder’s connect with people was his biggest strength.

“As my valued colleague in the Vajpayee government, I remember him as someone who very earnestly championed the cause of the upliftment of the poor and downtrodden,” Advani said.

Paswan was a grassroots leader in true sense, he added. “Paswanji’s passing away is indeed a big loss to the nation,” the veteran BJP leader said.