Lucknow, Apr 29 (IANS): The ruling BJP in Uttar Pradesh lost its third legislator to Covid this week when Nawabganj MLA, Kesar Singh Gangwar, 64, succumbed to the virus at a Noida hospital.

He is the third legislator to succumb to Covid in a week.

Singh was with BSP before being expelled by party chief Mayawati in 2016 on charges of anti-party activity. He later joined BJP and won from Nawabganj seat in the 2017 Assembly elections.

Kesar's sister-in-law Usha Gangwar has been a chairperson of Bareilly zila panchayat.

Earlier, Lucknow (West) legislator Suresh Srivastava and Auraiyya MLA Ramesh Chandra Diwakar had lost the battle against Covid.

Last year, two UP ministers, Chetan Chauhan and Kamal Rani Varun - MLAs from Naugawan Sadat and Ghatampur respectively - had died of Covid complications.

Meanwhile, Kesar Singh's son Vishal took to social media to express his anger over the circumstances that led to his father's death.

After testing positive on April 18, Kesar Singh was taken to Ram Murti Medical College, Bareilly, where his condition worsened.