Former PM Manmohan Singh cremated with full state honours

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh was cremated with full state honours here on Saturday in the presence of top dignitaries from India and abroad.

Singh's funeral pyre was lit by his eldest daughter Upinder Singh at the Nigambodh Ghat amid the chanting of religious hymns.

The last rites were performed in the presence of President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as also top leaders of the Congress party including Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and Mauritius Foreign Minister Dhananjay Ramful were among the foreign dignitaries who paid tributes to Singh, who served as the prime minister from 2004 to 2014.

Singh, 92, died on the night of December 26.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla also paid their last tributes to the former prime minister and laid wreaths on his mortal remains.

Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan and chiefs of the tri-services also laid wreaths.

Several chief ministers also attended the last rites of Singh. These included Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, besides Delhi Lt Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena.

Former chief ministers Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Ashok Gehlot and Bhupesh Baghel were also present, apart from AICC general secretaries K C Venugopal, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Jairam Ramesh, Randeep Surjewala and several former Union ministers.

Before the mortal remains of Singh were consigned to flames, the security forces gave a 21-gun salute to the former PM.

Sikh priests and Singh's family members recited verses from the Gurbani before performing his last rites.

The former prime minister's final journey began from the Congress headquarters, where party leaders and workers paid their last respects.

Singh's mortal remains were placed in a flower-bedecked vehicle and security personnel and party workers walked along the funeral route to finally reach Nigambodh Ghat around 11.30 am.

Draped in the Tricolour, the flower-bedecked casket was placed on a raised platform at the ghat where leaders cutting across party lines laid wreaths on Singh's mortal remains.

Earlier, Congress leaders paid homage to their departed leader at the AICC headquarters, where the body was placed for an hour to enable workers to have the last glimpse of their leader.

Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were among those who laid wreaths there as well as later at Nigambodh Ghat.

Singh's wife Gursharan Kaur and one of their daughters also laid a wreath on his body. The three daughters of Singh -- Upinder Singh, Daman Kaur and Amrit Kaur -- along with other relatives were present.

The vehicle carrying the mortal remains of Singh left his residence a little before 9 am and reached the Congress headquarters before moving ahead to Nigambodh Ghat 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 chanting "Jab tak suraj chand rahega, tab tak tera naam rahega".

Demands for giving Singh a Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award, were also raised during the procession.

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also accompanied the procession, sitting alongside Singh's relatives in an Army truck just ahead of the casket carrying Singh's mortal remains. Later he was also among those who carried the body of the former PM to the pyre.

Earlier, a row erupted over a memorial for the former prime minister with the Congress demanding that Singh's last rites be performed at a place where a memorial could be built later. The party alleged that the BJP government was "deliberately insulting" the first Sikh prime minister of the country in not designating a place for his funeral and memorial.

However, the Centre said it has already decided to set up a memorial for Singh and a suitable place would be found soon.

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.