NEW DELHI: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s body wrapped in the tricolour flag was cremated with full state honours at Nigambodh Ghat as per Sikh rituals.

During this, his wife and three daughters Upinder Singh, Daman Singh and Amrit Singh were present. Here his elder daughter Upinder Singh lit the funeral pyre of her father.
Sikh religious leaders sang Gurbani hymns.
Rahul Gandhi also shouldered Manmohan Singh’s body. Rahul looked inconsolable from the last journey to the last rites. Despite rain and cold winds, Rahul was seen walking miles in just a T-shirt.
President Draupadi Murmu, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Parliamentary Party President Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, other senior leaders of the Congress Party and many Union  ministers  were also present on this occasion. Foreign dignitaries including Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck and Mauritius’ Foreign Minister Dhananjay Ramphul attended the ceremony to honour Dr Singh’s legacy.
President Draupadi Murmu, Supreme Commander of the three services and the three armed forces, saluted former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh before the funeral. The former Prime Minister’s mortal remains were led by officers of the three armed forces along with military bands. Officers of the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force saluted the former Prime Minister here.
During the funeral of the former PM, slogans of ‘Dr Manmohan Singh Amar Rahe’ ‘Dr Sahab Amar Rahe’ kept echoing in the campus. Paying tribute, Rahul Gandhi said that Dr Manmohan Singh’s humility, guidance and his contribution to the country will always live on in the pages of history. At the same time, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, while paying tribute, said, last salute to former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh ji from the country and the Indian National Congress.
Dr Manmohan Singh’s last journey started from the Congress headquarters. On Saturday morning, with full respect, officers of the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force brought the body of the former Prime Minister to the Congress headquarters. Late Manmohan Singh’s wife and senior Congress leaders were present here. Sonia Gandhi and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge paid tribute to Manmohan Singh by offering the flag of the Indian National Congress on his body. Later, the body of the former Prime Minister was brought to Nigambodh Ghat. At Nigambodh Ghat, President Draupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Congress Chief Ministers, former Chief Ministers and top party leaders paid their last respects to the former Prime Minister.
When his body was kept for the last darshan at the Congress office, a huge crowd gathered for the last darshan. This crowd also joined his last journey. All the big leaders of Congress were seen in the last journey. For the last journey of Manmohan Singh, his mortal remains were kept in an army truck. Rahul Gandhi was seen sitting on the army truck during the entire journey. During this, he kept looking at Manmohan Singh. Apart from Rahul, Manmohan Singh’s family was also present in the truck during the last journey. Tight security arrangements were made on both sides of the army truck. During this, Congress workers kept running behind the truck and kept raising slogans. The people of the country are paying their last respects to him.
Meanwhile, the controversy over the selection of the site for Dr. Manmohan Singh’s funeral and a possible memorial in his name escalated further today. When Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused the Center of “insulting” the memory of the former Prime Minister. Dr. Singh, who was the Prime Minister of India from 2004 to 2014, died on 26 December at the age of 92 at AIIMS in Delhi. His funeral was held today with full state honors at Nigambodh Ghat.
The selection of the funeral site was described by Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi as an “insult” to Dr. Singh. “The present government has gravely insulted Bharat Mata’s great son and the first Prime Minister from the Sikh community, Dr Manmohan Singh ji, by cremating him at Nigambodh Ghat today. He was the Prime Minister of India for a decade, the country became an economic superpower during his tenure and his policies still support the poor and backward classes of the country,” Mr Gandhi wrote on Twitter.
“Till date, respecting the dignity of all former Prime Ministers, they have been cremated at authorised burial sites so that everyone can have a last darshan and pay homage without any inconvenience. Dr Manmohan Singh deserves our highest respect and memorial. The government should have shown respect to this great son of the country and his proud community.”
The BJP slammed the Congress for raising the issue on the day of Dr Singh’s funeral. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra criticised Mr Gandhi’s remarks and accused him of stooping to a “new low in Indian politics”. “This is a new low in Indian politics. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said that after the demise of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Cabinet decided in a meeting that since he was the Prime Minister and his stature was very high – so the Cabinet wrote a letter to the Congress and Dr Singh’s family – in which the Cabinet said that we want to build a memorial in his name.

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