Banker-turned-politician Meera Sanyal died on Friday after a brief illness.
Sanyal, 57, had joined the Aam Aadmi Party after quitting her job as the country chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland, and contested a Lok Sabha election in 2014.
AAP leader and Delhi’s deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia confirmed her death in a tweet, saying the country has lost a sharp economic brain and a gentle soul.
In her 30-year-old banking career before surprising all by plunging into politics, the Kochi-born Sanyal had also served as the head of corporate finance and chief operating officer for ABN Amro for Asia.
She unsuccessfully contested the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Mumbai south constituency.
Ms. Sanyal, a rare instance of an accomplished business honcho from Mumbai quitting the rat race to pursue social activism and even foray into politics, was the daughter of naval officer Vice Admiral Gulab Mohanlal Hiranandani. A book she had penned on the adverse effects of the demonetisation of high-value currency notes on the Indian economy was released just two months ago.
A Harvard Business School alumnus, she entered politics in 2009, when she contested the Lok Sabha polls as an independent candidate for the Mumbai South constituency.
She later gravitated towards the India Against Corruption movement that erupted across the country in 2011-12, hung up her boots as a banker in 2013 and eventually joined AAP formed by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
She contested the 2014 LS election as an AAP candidate from Mumbai South, where she won more than 40,000 votes and finished fourth. She was a key part of AAP’s economic policy wing.
“Extremely sad to hear this. No words to explain,” tweeted Mr Kejriwal reacting to the news of demise of Sanyal.
“She was a great source of energy and her inputs helped the party across the country as well as in Maharashtra,” said Ruben Mascarenhas, National Joint Secretary, AAP.
Tributes also poured in from economists and bankers across the spectrum late evening as Ms. Sanyal was a revered professional in both her adopted roles of banking and politics. She had begun her career three decades ago as a planning officer at ANZ Grindlays, followed by stints at Lazard and ABN Amro Bank, where she rose to become the Chief Financial Officer for their Indian operations. She was subsequently made the bank’s Chief Operating Officer for Asia.