Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was consigned to flames on Saturday at Nigambodh ghat in New Delhi. The veteran economist, known for ushering economic reforms in the country, passed away on Thursday at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi.
Singh was accorded full State honours at the crematorium with President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Union Ministers Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, and Kiren Rijiju, Chief of Defence Staff Lieutenant Anil Chauhan, Chief of the three armed forces, Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, and Delhi Chief Minister Atishi paying their last respects.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Sonia Gandhi, and party MP Priyanka Gandhi also paid their tribute.
Bhutan Monarch Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Mauritian Foreign Minister Dhananjay Ramful arrived in the national capital to attend the funeral while diplomats from several countries also paid their respects to Singh at the crematorium.
Chief Ministers Siddaramaiah, Revanth Reddy, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, and former CMs Ashok Gehlot and Charanjit Singh Channi also reached Delhi to bid farewell to the former PM.
Singh is survived by his wife Gursharan Kaur, who lit his pyre, and his daughters Upinder Kaur, Daman Kaur, and Amrit Kaur .
Centre Agrees For Manmohan Singh Memorial
The Union Home Ministry said on Friday it will allocate space for a memorial of the former PM and the same has been communicated to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and the family of Manmohan Singh.
The development came after Congress raked up the issue saying not finding a location for the crematorium and memorial of Singh was a deliberate insult to the country's first Sikh prime minister.
The row was sparked after the home ministry said Singh's last rites would be held at New Delhi's Nigambodh Ghat at 11.45 am on Saturday with full state honours.
Putting the issue to rest, the home ministry released a statement late night stating the government received a request to allocate space for a memorial for Singh from the Congress chief.