TNI Bureau: Veteran Odisha politician Dr. Damodar Rout passed away today at the age of 83.

The senior politician breathed his last while undergoing treatment at a private hospital.

According to his son Sambit, his father was rushed to the Capital Hospital for treatment after he suffered from a heart attack on March 18.

Later, the 7-time MLA was shifted to a private hospital as his condition deteriorated further and the doctor declared him brain dead. He was officially declared dead today.

Damodar Rout, aveterinary doctor by profession was donpato in  Jagatsinghpur district on 2 July 1942.

Inspired by former CM and legendary leader Biju Patnaik, he joined politics in the 1970s and was first elected to the Odisha Assembly in 1977 on a Janata Party ticket.

In also won the 1980 election as a Janata Party (Secular) nominee, and later in 1990 as Janata Dal candidate.

Rout joined the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) after it was formed in 1997 following Biju Patnaik’s death. Rout won the 2000 election as a BJD candidate from the Balikuda-Ersama constituency. However, he switched his constituency to the port town of Paradeep in 2009. In 2014 to he won from Pradeep.

Rout wa a minister in each of Naveen Patnaik’s first four terms and managed 15 different portfolios over the years.

However, he was expelled from the party in 2018 for alleged party activities. He had joined the BJP days before the 2019 simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. But later, he left the saffron party alleging that he was not kept in loop in party activities.

Recently, he was reinstated  by BJD on “sympathy grounds” as he receives treatment for age-related ailments.