Thiruvananthapuram(PTI): Popular Malayalam actress Saranya Sasi died at a private hospital here on Monday, sources close to her said. The 35-year-old actress was diagnosed with brain tumour years ago and underwent surgical procedure several times as part of the treatment.

When she faced a severe financial crisis, Saranya's friends and well-wishers had raised funds for her treatment.While she was undergoing treatment for tumour, she contracted COVID-19 in May this year.

She recovered from the virus infection but her health condition worsened due to related complications.

Hailing from Pazhayangadi in Kannur district, she had acted in a few Malayalam movies like 'Chacko Randaman' and 'Chotta Mumbai' and was a popular TV actress in the state.

Condoling the death, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the actress fought the disease confidently.

Hailing her commitment towards society, Vijayan recalled that the actress had set aside an amount from her medical expenses for the people when the state was hit by floods.

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Mumbai (PTI): Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday slammed former Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, alleging that he had removed the fear of the law from politicians who defected from parties in Maharashtra.

Raut claimed that by not deciding on the disqualification petitions, Chandrachud kept doors and windows open for defections.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader's statement comes after his party faced a severe drubbing in the state assembly elections, as it managed to clinch only 20 out of 95 seats it contested as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).

The performance of the party's alliance partners was no better, with the Congress winning only 16 out of 101 seats and NCP (SP) getting only 10 out of 86 seats it contested.

Talking to reporters, Raut alleged, "He (Chandrachud) has removed the fear of the law from defectors. His name will be written in black letters in history."

Following the split in the undivided Shiv Sena in 2022, the party's faction headed by Uddhav Thackeray filed petitions in the Supreme Court on the disqualification of party MLAs who defected along with Eknath Shinde. The apex court put the onus on the assembly Speaker to decide on the disqualification petitions, which he did earlier this year, declaring the Sena bloc led by Shinde as the “real political party”.

Raut alleged that the results of the assembly election were pre-decided. If the then CJI had decided on the disqualification petitions on time, the outcome would have been different.

"We are sad but not disappointed. We will not leave the fight incomplete. Division of votes was also a factor, and the RSS played an important role in the election. The poisonous campaign impacted us negatively," he said.

He said the swearing-in ceremony for the new government should be held in neighbouring Gujarat.

Meanwhile, in his weekly column "Rokhthok" in the party mouthpiece "Saamana", the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader claimed that it was time to offer condolences to the Election Commission, which turned a blind eye to the use of money power.

"The courts have been in the ICU for a long time," he alleged.