Speaker of the Nagaland Legislative Assembly Vikho-o Yhoshu passed away in Mumbai on Monday morning.
The 67-year-old leader of the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) was diagnosed with lung cancer.
An alumnus of the Indian School of Mines (ISM), Yhoshu was elected to the Nagaland Legislative in 2013 and 2018 from Southern Angami-I constituency as NDPP candidate.
He was elected as the Speaker of the state Assembly in March this year.
He defeated Imtiwapang Aier of the Naga People’s Front (NPF) in the Speaker’s race.
After the demise of Yhoshu, condolence messages continue to pour in.
In his condolence message, Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio termed Yhoshu as a “kindhearted man & a gentle soul”.
Rio tweeted: “I am deeply saddened by the demise of the Hon’ble Speaker of Nagaland Legislative Assembly, Er. Vikho-o Yhoshu who passed away in Mumbai, this morning. He was a kindhearted man & a gentle soul. #Nagaland has lost a great leader. My deepest condolences to his family and loved ones.”
I am deeply saddened by the demise of the Hon'ble Speaker of Nagaland Legislative Assembly, Er. Vikho-o Yhoshu who passed away in Mumbai, this morning. He was a kindhearted man & a gentle soul. #Nagaland has lost a great leader. My deepest condolences to his family and loved ones
— Neiphiu Rio (@Neiphiu_Rio) December 30, 2019
Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma has also expressed his deep condolence at the demise of Yhoshu.
“Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Shri Vikho-o Yhoshu ji, Hon’ble Speaker of the Nagaland Assembly who passed away today. May his soul rest in eternal peace,” tweeted Conrad Sangma.
My deepest condolences to the family and friends of Shri Vikho-o Yhoshu ji, Speaker of the Nagaland Assembly who passed away today. May his soul rest in peace.
— Conrad Sangma (@SangmaConrad) December 30, 2019
Nagaland deputy chief minister Yanthungo Patton said Yhoshu was “a man of utmost sincerity, knowledge and compassion”.
He tweeted: “Saddened at the news of the demise of NLA Speaker Er. Vikho-o Yhoshu. My heartfelt prayers and condolences to the bereaved family. He was a man of utmost sincerity, knowledge, and compassion. He remains a towering personality amongst us. May his soul rest in eternal peace.”
Saddened at the news of the demise of NLA Speaker Er. Vikho-o Yhoshu. My heartfelt prayers and condolences to the bereaved family. He was a man of utmost sincerity, knowledge, and compassion. He remains a towering personality amongst us. May his soul rest in eternal peace. pic.twitter.com/6xPSgCs7lW
— Yanthungo Patton (@YanthungoPatton) December 30, 2019
Nagaland Lok Sabha MP Tokheho Yepthomi tweeted: “Extremely saddened to learn that Hon’ble Speaker NLA, Vikho-o Yhoshu has passed away.”
Yepthomi termed Yhoshu as a “humble and dedicated person”.
Extremely saddened to learn that Hon’ble Speaker NLA, Vikho-o Yhoshu has passed away. A humble and dedicated person. I pray for his family during this extremely difficult period. May he rest in peace. @ombirlakota #nagaland pic.twitter.com/ZK83bygVoO
— Tokheho Yepthomi (@TokhehoYepthomi) December 30, 2019
The Nagaland BJP on its Twitter handle said: “Saddened to hear about the sudden demise of Shri. Vikho-o Yhoshu, Hon’ble Speaker of Nagaland Legislative Assembly and Leader of NDPP. Nagaland has lost one of the most able and promising leader. May his soul Rest in Peace.”
Stating that Yhoshu “will be missed” by him, adviser to the Nagaland CM & NDPP’s secretary general Abu Metha tweeted: “The demise of Nagaland Assembly Speaker Vikho-o Yhoshu is a sad occasion 4 Nagaland&a great loss 4 our people. He was a remarkable gentleman politician with a clean&kind heart. A good human being to the core&loved by the people.”