Thiruvananthapuram, August 24: The untimely demise of former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is a huge loss, said former Defence Minister A.K.Antony. Antony said he had a long standing relationship with Jaitley.

"I had a very good relationship with him, first when he was a Union Minister under A.B.Vajpayee (1999 to 2004) and I was the Chief Minister of Kerala (2001-04)then. It was always easy to meet him as he used to easily give us appointments," said Antony. 'Homage to Arun Jaitley': Gujarat Minister Vasan Ahir's Massive Gaffe, Expresses Grief Over 'Death' of BJP Veteran at Public Event.

"Later, when, I became the Defence Minister, Jaitley was a member of the Rajya Sabha. He later became the Leader of the Opposition in the Upper House. He was a person who used to maintain a very good relation with all, irrespective of political affiliations. He is certainly going to be missed by all those who knew him," said Antony. Arun Jaitley passed away on Saturday at AIIMS in Delhi after prolonged illness.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 24, 2019 02:07 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).