Srinagar (Jammu Kashmir): Last surviving member of the Jammu and Kashmir Constituent Assembly, Krishan Dev Sethi, passed away at 4 a.m. today at his ancestral home at Dalpatian Mohallah, Jammu.
He was 93- year-old.
Sethi, who was a strong votary of resolution of Kashmir issue, was a member of the constituent Assembly which framed the constitution of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Born in Mirpur in 1925, Krishna Dev Sethi saw all the ups and downs from the partition of the subcontinent to the beginning of the armed struggle in Jammu and Kashmir.
When the Jammu unit of the National Conference was formed in 1949, Sethi was made its General Secretary. In 1951, he became a member of the first Constituent Assembly. Sethi along with Muhammad Sadiq, Mir Qasim, and 21 others formed the Democratic National Conference, which became the first opposition party in the Assembly with 21 members.
Later, Ghulam Muhammad Sadiq, Mir Qasim and many others rejoined the National Conference led by Bakhshi and Sethi joined the Communist Party.
During the Sino-India War, several Communist leaders, including Sethi, were arrested and held captive for nearly two and a half years.
He also represented the Nowshera Assembly segment of Jammu and Kashmir. He is survived by a son and a daughter.
According to family sources, his cremation will take place today at 1:00 p.m. at Jogi Gate, Jammu.
