Distinguished jurist and India’s former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Laxmi Mall Singhvi died of a heart attack here on Saturday after a brief illness. He was 76.

A former member of both the Lok Sabha (1962-1967) and Rajya Sabha (1998-2004), Singhvi was one of the leading constitutional experts in the country, apart from being a prolific writer and a scholar on religion and culture.

Born on November 9, 1931 in Jodhpur, Singhvi was ailing for the past few weeks and admitted to a private hospital in Delhi. He is survived by his wife Kamala, son Abhishek Manu Singhvi—a top-notch lawyer and spokesperson of the Congress party—and daughter Abhilasha.

Singhvi will be cremated at the Lodhi Road crematorium on Sunday morning.

Awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1998, Singhvi straddled the world of international law, diplomacy and culture with ease. He was one of India’s longest-serving and most successful High Commissioners to the UK. During his stint in London, he oversaw the establishment of the Nehru Centre, the cultural wing of the High Commission.

He was one of the main people behind organising Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas, and was chairman of the event in 2003 and 2004.

Singhvi was associated with a number of national and international organisations in different capacities. His services were recognised with a number of awards, including the U Thant Peace Award and Rotary International’s Ambassador of Excellence Award.

His books Freedom on Trial and A Tale of Three Cities won critical acclaim.