Raipur: The Chhattisgarh government has declared one-day state mourning as a mark of respect to former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kailash Joshi, who passed away earlier on Sunday.

No cultural programme will be organised in the state during this time, the government said in an official statement.

Chief minister Bhupesh Baghel also condoled his demise.

Former Madhya Pradesh chief minister and senior BJP leader Kailash Chandra Joshi passed away in Bhopal on Sunday.

 As a member of the Janata Party, Joshi had served for six months as the ninth chief minister of Madhya Pradesh from June 1977 to January 1978.

Reportedly, he was also the first non-Congress chief minister of the state.

 Later, he joined BJP and became a member of the Lok Sabha from 2004 to 2014 from Bhopal constituency in Madhya Pradesh. 

With ANI inputs