New Delhi, Jan 29 (PTI) Former defence minister George Fernandes passed away Tuesday following a prolonged illness, his family sources said.

Fernandes was suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Recently, he contracted swine flu, they said.

Fernandes was India's defence minister in the NDA government headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)