The former Prime Minister, I.K. Gujral, was cremated here on Saturday with full state honours, with the country’s top leadership, including President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, present to pay their last respects.
Mr. Gujral, who was Prime Minister from April 1997 to March 1998, passed away on Friday at a private hospital in Gurgaon after multi-organ failure.
The body was consigned to the flames at Smriti Sthal on the banks of the Yamuna, amid prayers and a 21-gun salute. The last rites were performed by Mr. Gujral’s sons, Akali Dal MP Naresh Gujral and Vishal Gujral, along with one of his grandsons.
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Other leaders who attended the cremation included Vice-President M. Hamid Ansari, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Defence Minister A.K. Antony, Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, Law Minister Ashwani Kumar, New and Renewable Energy Minister Farooq Abdullah, Science and Technology Minister S. Jaipal Reddy, BJP leaders L.K. Advani and Arun Jaitley, Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, and Indian National Lok Dal chief Om Prakash Chautala.
Besides retired and senior Indian bureaucrats, diplomats from various countries were present. "