New Delhi, 20 September (H.S.): Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and several leaders from both the ruling and opposition parties on Sunday expressed grief over the demise of senior journalist Payal Mehta.

Prime Minister Modi said in a post on X that Payal Mehta was a hardworking journalist who remained grounded and brought a deep understanding of national issues to her reporting. Beyond her professional work, he said, she would be remembered for the kindness and affection with which she touched the lives of so many people. Describing her sudden and untimely demise as deeply painful, Modi expressed his condolences to her family, friends and colleagues and prayed to God to give them strength during this difficult time. He concluded with the words, “Om Shanti.”

Om Birla said that Payal Mehta was a talented and senior journalist who had been covering parliamentary affairs for a long time. He described her demise as a profound loss to journalism and prayed for peace for the departed soul and strength for the bereaved family.

Rajnath Singh said Payal was an extremely hardworking and dedicated journalist who covered the proceedings of Parliament with complete sincerity and professionalism. During parliamentary sessions, he said, she would remain present from morning until late at night, closely following the proceedings without fatigue and carrying out her work with remarkable dedication.

Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah said Payal Mehta was an outstanding professional who remained committed to providing her readers and viewers with every detail related to an issue. He described her as a warm and affectionate person and said that the untimely demise of such a talented and hardworking journalist was an irreparable loss to the journalism fraternity.

Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda said that as a talented and passionate journalist, Payal Mehta would be remembered for her dedication to her work and her kind-hearted nature. He described her untimely demise as an irreparable loss for the entire journalism community.

Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi said Payal would be remembered for her calm demeanour, deep understanding of journalism, thoughtful questions and honesty towards her work.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Nitin Nabin said Payal Mehta was known for her hard work, deep understanding of national issues and her distinctive warmth and affection towards everyone she came in contact with. He said her untimely demise was a major loss to the media fraternity.

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said he was deeply saddened by the untimely demise of journalist Payal Mehta, who covered the proceedings of Parliament.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar