Cho Ramaswamy dead: Narendra Modi recalls how veteran journalist introduced him as 'Merchant of Death'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned emotional on hearing about the death of veteran journalist Cho Ramaswamy. He recalled an incident in which the latter introduced him as the "Merchant of Death."

Cho Ramaswamy, who was the founder and editor of Tamil magazine Thuglak, died of cardiac arrest on December 6 2016. The 82-year-old journalist was receiving treatment for respiratory problems at Apollo Hospital in Chennai. Soon after hearing the news of his death, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to his Twitter handle to express his sorrow on his passing and offer condolences to his family.

Narendra Modi tweeted: "Cho Ramaswamy was a multidimensional personality, towering intellectual, great nationalist & fearless voice who was respected and admired. Above all, Cho Ramaswamy was a dear friend. I have been to his annual readers meeting which were an unprecedented editor reader interface. Cho Ramaswamy was insightful, frank & brilliant. Pained by his demise. Condolences to his family & countless readers of Thuglak."

Meanwhile, Modi recalled how Cho Ramaswamy introduced him as the "Merchant of Death" at his annual readers meeting. He posted the video featuring this incident on his Twitter handle and wrote: "The feisty Cho Ramaswamy introduces me as the 'Merchant of Death.' Do watch this memorable interaction."

Modi ‏posted another video, which shows him sharing his thoughts on his relationship with Cho Ramaswamy and praising him for his fight for democracy since the days of emergency. Besides the video, the prime minister also wrote: "I returned the favour, but don't think I matched Cho's eloquence. Hear what I said about him."

Here are both the videos posted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his Twitter handle:

Cho Ramaswamy, whose real name is Srinivasa Iyer Ramaswamy, was a multi-fecet personality and he worked as an actor, comedian, editor, political satirist, playwright and dialogue writer, film director and lawyer in Tamil Nadu. He was widely considered to be an unbiased political analyst. In recent years, he has been applauding Narendra Modi for his diligent work towards the development of India.