A BJP MLA in the state of Uttar Pradesh passed away in the morning hours of Tuesday - September 6 at the age of 65 due to a heart attack. The demise of a veteran politician has left the party in shockwaves and several leaders and cadres have been paying tribute to the deceased leader and expressing their condolences to his family. 

Arvind Giri had been serving as a BJP MLA from the Gola Gokarannath constituency in Uttar Pradesh. It has been reported that he suffered a cardiac arrest on Monday and he was rushed to Lucknow for further treatments. However, the legislator breathed his last on the way to the hospital. Giri was a five-time MLA and stood at the tickets of Samajwadi and Congress parties before joining the BJP. 

According to reports, Giri was elected as an MLA for the first time on the Samajwadi party's ticket in 1996 and went on to serve as the MLA for two consecutive times - in 2002 and 2007 from the Haiderabad constituency that was later renamed Gola Gokarannath after delimitation. In 2012, Giri contested in the polls on a Congress ticket and eventually, he lost the race. 

Later, he quit Congress and joined the BJP and won the election in 2017 and 2022 from the same constituency. Giri entered politics at a young age and he was in students' politics before joining the Samajwadi party in 1993. His wife Sudha Giri is also in politics and she has won the Gola Nagar Palika Chairperson elections in 2007. 

After learning about the demise of Arvind Giri, several leaders are paying tribute. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took to Twitter and wrote, "The demise of BJP MLA from Gola assembly constituency of Lakhimpur Kheri district, Arvind Giri Ji is unfortunate. My condolences are with the bereaved family. May Lord Shri Ram grant the departed soul a place at his feet and strength to the bereaved family members to bear this unfathomable loss. Om Shanti."