Former Minister and Maoist Centre leader Rai passes away

Kathmandu, November 23 — Padam Rai, a leader of the Nepal Communist Party (Maoist Centre) and former minister, has passed away. He was 57.

He passed away on Saturday at Bir Hospital in Kathmandu, where he was undergoing treatment for Parkinson's disease, as informed by Maoist Centre leader Sudan Kiranti.

Rai, from Shadananda Municipality, Bhojpur, was a central committee member of the party.

After the division of the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), Rai had joined the faction led by Mohan Baidya. Following the split in Baidya's party, he aligned with Netra Bikram Chand "Biplav."

However, he later returned to the Maoist Centre. Kirati mentioned that the decision regarding his last rites is yet to be made.

Meanwhile, Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) expressed sorrow over Rai's passing.

"The demise of our central committee member and former minister, Padam Rai, who was suffering from Parkinson’s disease, has made us sad. I offer my heartfelt condolences to his grieving family and pay my tribute to him," Prachanda wrote on Facebook.