India, Aug. 4 -- Leaders across party lines paid heartfelt tributes to Shibu Soren, the towering figure of Jharkhand politics and father of Chief Minister Hemant Soren, who passed away on Monday at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi after a prolonged illness.

Remembered fondly as 'Guruji' by his supporters and his colleagues, Soren's passing marks the end of an era in Indian political life. He was 81.

He was admitted in the last week of June with complications related to a kidney ailment, hospital sources said.

Expressing grief over Soren's death, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him a "stalwart who dedicated his life to the upliftment of the marginalised."

"Shri Shibu Soren Ji was a grassroots leader who rose through the ranks of pub...