During Manmohan Singh's funeral, the Congress party stated that its leaders chose not to accompany his family in order to respect their privacy.
Arpit Pattnaik
The controversy regarding former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh's funeral escalated on Monday, with the Congress party asserting that senior leaders chose not to accompany his family “out of respect for their privacy.” This statement followed comments made by Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri of the BJP, who noted that Congress leaders were absent when Dr. Singh’s ashes were immersed in the Yamuna River, while BJP leaders were present.
Dr. Manmohan Singh passed away on Thursday at the age of 92. He was cremated with full state honors at Nigambodh Ghat in New Delhi on Saturday, attended by numerous dignitaries from India and abroad.
In a statement, Congress leader and Chairman of the Media and Publicity Department Pawan Khera explained, “Senior Congress leaders did not attend the immersion of Manmohan Singh's ashes out of respect for the family’s privacy.”
Khera added that, “After the cremation of the former Prime Minister, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra met with the family at their residence.” He stated that after discussions with the family, it was determined that since they did not have privacy during the cremation and some relatives could not reach the site, it would be more respectful to allow them privacy during the immersion of the ashes—an emotionally challenging ceremony for close family members.
Khera also criticized the focus on Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the funeral. He claimed that Dr. Singh’s family members were not seated in the front row during the cremation service and questioned why Prime Minister Modi remained seated when the tricolor was handed over to the former Prime Minister’s wife. "Why couldn’t he stand up?" Khera asked.
In response, the BJP defended itself, with IT department head Amit Malviya addressing Khera’s allegations and accusing the Congress party of politicizing the death of the former Prime Minister. In a post titled “Point-wise Demolition of Baseless Allegations Made by the Congress,” Malviya stated, “It’s a shame that the Congress continues to politicize former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh’s death.”
