India's cabinet minister and former Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh died Tuesday at a hospital in Chennai, Indian media reported. He was suffering from malignant hepatoma, a type of liver cancer, which had led to multiple organ failure.

Deshmukh, who was the Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences, was twice elected the chief minister of Maharashtra state.

The 67-year-old politician, who is survived by his wife and three sons, had been on and off the ventilator as the doctors prepared for a liver transplant. However, plans to transplant liver from a brain-dead man had failed following the man's death earlier than expected.

Deshmukh had to resign his position as Maharashtra chief minister following the 26/11 Mumbai attacks and was later hit by several corruption allegations including the Adarsh Housing Society scam that dated back to 2002.

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