Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], December 4 (ANI): Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Friday expressed his condolences on the demise of Lakshadweep administrator Dineshwar Sharma who passed away due to a lung-related ailment today.

"I am saddened by the demise of Shri. #DineshwarSharma, Administrator,#Lakshadweep. His service as IPS officer (Kerala) and his valuable contribution towards national security will be long remembered. My condolence" the PRO, Kerala Raj Bhavan wrote on Twitter.

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MGM Healthcare Hospital where Sharma was admitted issued a release in which it stated the exact cause of his death.

"Dineshwar Sharma, IPS, Lakshadweep Administrator, former J-K interlocutor and former Director IB who had been admitted at MGM Healthcare since November 25, 2020, for Interstitial Lung Disease on ECMO support suffered severe bleeding due to intracerebral haemorrhage. With profound grief, we regret to inform that he passed away at 2:40 pm," the release stated.

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Sharma passed away on Friday at the age of 66 at a Chennai hospital due to a lung-related ailment, Lakshadweep Resident Commissioner Asarpal Singh said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condoled the demise of Sharma and recognised his contributions in strengthening the security of the country during his policing career.

"Administrator of Lakshadweep Shri Dineshwar Sharma Ji made long-lasting contributions to India's policing and security apparatus. He handled many sensitive counter-terror and insurgency ops during his policing career. Anguished by his demise. Condolences to his family. Om Shanti," PM Modi had tweeted.

President Ram Nath Kovind had on October 23, 2020, appointed Dineshwar Sharma, former interlocutor for Jammu and Kashmir, as the Administrator of Lakshadweep.

A 1976-batch retired IPS officer of Kerala cadre, Sharma served as chief of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) from December 31, 2014, to May 2017.

He was appointed as the interlocutor for Jammu and Kashmir in 2017 during the first term of the Modi-led government. (ANI)

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