Telugu Desam Party leader and Andhra Pradesh MLC MVVS Murthy died in a road accident in the United States on Tuesday, reported the Hindustan Times. The car crash, which took place in Alaska, killed two other passengers from Visakhapatnam travelling with him, and the driver of the car.

Murthy, 76, an industrialist, was the founder of the Gandhi Institute of Technology And Management University in Visakhapatnam. He was visiting the US to meet the university’s alumni in California on October 6. He had travelled to Alaska for a wildlife safari.

The accident took place on Monday afternoon local time when the driver of the van Murthy was travelling in allegedly attempted to pass a commercial vehicle in a no-passing zone, reported the Anchorage Daily News. The van collided with a pick-up truck in the opposite lane and seriously injured a child inside. Murthy and the van driver died, while two passengers succumbed to their injuries later. Another is in a critical condition in a nearby hospital, said the police.

“There is no reason to believe the truck driver was at fault at all,” said a police spokesperson.

Murthy was elected twice, in 1991 and in 1999, as a member of the 10th and 13th Lok Sabha from Visakhapatnam. He was a sitting MLC from Visakhapatnam district. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and other senior leaders of the Telegu Desam Party condoled Murthy’s death.