Well-known consumer activist Hari Dev Shourie, who made public interest litigation (PIL) a potent weapon in the struggle for justice, died here Tuesday. He was 93.

Shourie, according to relatives, had not slept well Monday night. The end came around 10.30 a.m. He was cremated at the Lodhi Road crematorium 3 p.m.

A former bureaucrat, Shourie launched Common Cause, a public interest organisation that helped protect the rights of the common man, in 1980.

Through his persistent efforts, Shourie became the best-known face of a public campaign that set in motion a series of radical changes in governance and among political parties.

He is survived by his celebrity sons Arun Shourie, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former central minister, and Deepak Shourie, managing director of Discovery Communications India, and daughter Nalini Singh, a TV personality.

Shourie served the public for more than 30 years as an Indian Civil Service official, but actually he never retired from public service till he breathed his last.

He had launched his book "A Romance With Public Cause" just 10 days ago.

Shourie prepared petitions by himself before sending them to lawyers, bringing to the court's notice violations of the fundamental rights of the common man.

Through his 25-year-old NGO Common Cause, Shourie filed 70 writ petitions before the Supreme Court and Delhi High Court.

"He was always hopeful that someone else would take over the baton of Common Cause after him. He believed one should be immersed in working for others," Nalini Singh told.

In 1995, H.D. Shourie's relentless campaign forced the Supreme Court to order political parties to file annual income tax returns.

He was also the force behind the government move to set up consumer courts in all districts across the country.

And it was due to the activist's initiative that in 1997 the government set up an expert committee to draft a Freedom of Information Bill that has now become the Right to Information Act.

"My father always told us, 'Do one good thing every day. Do good to individuals, especially those who cannot do anything to you in return'," said Arun Shourie.

Apart from his passion towards public causes, Shourie was an artiste and photographer. He started painting at the age of 16 and believed in painting only beautiful things, his relatives said.

A condolence message from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said: "Shourie belonged to that rare breed of individuals who put the 'public interest' above everything else. He strove relentlessly to safeguard and promote the rights of consumers and used public interest litigation, advocacy and other tools imaginatively towards this end."

Earlier in the day, Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani, BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi and former prime minister I.K. Gujral visited Shourie's residence to pay their last respects.