Politicians condole Jaspal Bhatti's demise

As a class, politicians may have been at the receiving end of humorist-actor Jaspal Bhatti but they were united in offering tributes to him following his death in a car accident early Thursday.

Expressing grief, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal described Bhatti as a "multi-faceted personality and a true son of the soil".

"Bhatti, through his rare sarcastic humour and wit made enormous contribution in sensitising the general public, especially at the grass roots level in eradicating social evils from the society," Badal said in his condolence message.

Bhatti died early Thursday after the Honda Accord car in which he was travelling hit a tree near Nakodar town, 170 km from here. Bhatti was travelling from Bathinda to Jalandhar for the promotion of his latest film "Power Cut", which is to be released Friday.

Badal said that Bhatti was "an icon for budding artists, especially the humorists across the country. He has left an indelible imprint on the television and Punjabi film industry due to his relentless efforts to relieve the stressed minds in the present melancholic society through his healthy comedy."

"As a 'laughter king', he became a household name in comedy. A void has been created in the arena of Punjabi film industry, TV and print media which will be hard to be filled," Badal added.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said that Bhatti was known for highlighting the problems of the common man in a satirical manner.

"He will be long remembered for his television series 'Flop Show' and mini capsule 'Ulta Pulta'," Hooda said.

Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni said: "Shri Bhatti will always be remembered for his portrayal of the problems of the common man. He truly pioneered the comedy content on TV, especially through Doordarshan. His TV shows left a deep imprint on the minds of the common people. He always regaled the audience with his subtle, quiet and honest humour."

Film actors, TV personalities, theatre artists and people from other fields also condoled the untimely death of the 57-year-old comedian-actor.