Cho Ramaswamy passes away

Cho Ramaswamy, political commentator, theatre personality and editor of Thuglak, a Tamil magazine known for its withering satire and fearless criticism of political figures, died here early on Wednesday.

He was 82 and is survived by his wife, son and daughter.

The funeral will be held at 3 p.m. at Besant Nagar crematorium.

Cho was a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha from 1999 to 2005.

Cho Ramaswamy was a close friend of former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa, who died on Monday night. Cho campaigned for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the latter called him his “raj guru”.

“Cho was insightful, frank, brilliant. Pained by his demise. Condolences to his family and countless readers of Thuglak,” Modi tweeted.

Cho Ramaswamy was insightful, frank & brilliant. Pained by his demise. Condolences to his family & countless readers of Thuglak.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 7, 2016