IK Gujral cremated with State Honours

TNI Bureau: Former Prime Minister IK Gujral, who passed away at the age of 92 yesterday, was cremated with full state honours at Smriti Sthal on the banks of Yamuna in New Delhi. He was given a 21-gun salute.

The funeral was attended by President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice President Dr. Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi, BJP leader LK Advani, Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Defence Minister A K Antony, Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and many other top dignitaries.

The last rites were performed by IK Gujral’s sons, including Rajya Sabha MP Naresh Gujral. His body was draped in tricolour and brought to Smriti Sthal in a flower-decorated gun-carriage.

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh expressed deep grief over the demise of Gujral and said that India lost a great freedom fighter, patriot and a renowned scholar statesman. He hailed IK Gujral as the ‘Great Son of India’.