LIVE | India bids farewell to Manmohan Singh; Rahul Gandhi attacks Modi govt
Considered the architect of India's economic reforms, Singh served as the prime minister for 10 years between 2004 and 2014
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the architect of India's economic reforms and a consensus builder in the rough world of politics, was laid to rest with full state honours at Delhi's Nighambodh Ghat on Saturday (December 28).
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi were prominent among those who paid last respects to the departed leader before his last rites.
The procession carrying Singh's mortal remains reached the crematorium at around 11.30 pm.
Later, Rahul attacked the Narendra Modi government for "insulting" Manmohan Singh over the venue for his last rites.
"The great son of Mother India and the first Prime Minister of the Sikh community, Dr. Manmohan Singh ji has been totally insulted by the present government by performing his last rites today at the Nigambodh Ghat. He was the Prime Minister of India for a decade, during his tenure the country became an economic superpower and his policies are still the support of the poor and backward classes of the country," Rahul wrote on his X (formerly Twitter) account in Hindi.
"Till date, respecting the dignity of all former Prime Ministers, their last rites were performed at authorized burial sites so that every person could have the last darshan and pay homage without any inconvenience. Dr. Manmohan Singh deserves our highest respect and a memorial. The government should have shown respect to this great son of the country and his proud community," he added.
Earlier, the final journey of Singh began from the AICC headquarters on Saturday morning after Congress leaders paid homage to their departed leader.
The flower-bedecked vehicle carrying the mortal remains of Singh left the Congress headquarters in a procession amid chants of "Manmohan Singh amar rahe".
A large number of Congress workers and leaders along with hundreds of Singh's well-wishers walked along as "Jab tak suraj chand rahega, tab tak tera naam rahega" slogans rent the air.
Former Congress chief and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, also accompanied the procession alongside Singh's relatives.
Singh's mortal remains were taken to the AICC headquarters from his residence on 3, Motilal Nehru Road a little before 9 AM.
The mortal remains were kept there for about an hour, with several top Congress leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, paying their last respects, among others.
Singh's wife Gursharan Kaur and one of their daughters also laid a wreath on his body and paid their last respects.
Singh passed away on Thursday night at Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences due to age-related medical complications. He was 92.
Considered the architect of India's economic reforms, Singh served as the prime minister for 10 years between 2004 and 2014.
A seven-day national mourning is being observed throughout the country as a mark of respect to the former prime minister during which the national flag will be flown at half-mast across the nation, the Union Home Ministry has announced.
Also read: Three decades of economic reforms with Manmohan Singh's Liberalisation
Also read: Manmohan Singh obit: Father of liberalisation, MGNREGA, and Aadhaar
Also read: Go well, Dr Manmohan Singh; not just history but the present is kinder to you
Live Updates
- 27 Dec 2024 11:12 AM IST
PM Modi on Manmohan Singh: 'He will always be remembered as a kind person'
PM Modi: "It is not ordinary to lose so much in Partition and achieve a lot in various aspects of life. His life teaches the future generation how to rise above poverty and struggles and achieve heights. He will always be remembered as a kind person, a learned economist and political leader dedicated to reforms."
- 27 Dec 2024 10:48 AM IST
Manmohan spoke of military action after terror attack: Cameron in memoir
Former British Prime Minister David Cameron has mentioned in his memoir that Manmohan Singh had told him after the July 2011 Mumbai bombings that in case of another such attack, India would have to take military action against Pakistan.
The 2011 Mumbai bombings, also known as 13/7, were a series of three coordinated bomb explosions at different locations in Mumbai on July 13, 2011 between 6.54 pm and 7.06 pm at Opera House, Zaveri Bazaar and Dadar West localities, leaving 26 dead and 130 injured.
In his book "For the Record" released in 2019, Cameron wrote, “I got on well with prime minister Manmohan Singh. He was a saintly man, but he was robust on the threats India faced. On a later visit he told me that another terrorist attack like that in Mumbai in July 2011, and India would have to take military action against Pakistan.” On a visit to Amritsar in 2013 while he and Singh were prime ministers, Cameron had described the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 as a deeply shameful event in British history. PTI
