Bhupesh Baghel to attend Mulayam Singh Yadav's funeral in Saifai

RAIPUR (CHHATTISGARH): Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel will be attending the last rites of Samajwadi Party veteran leader Mulayam Singh Yadav in Saifai who passed away on Monday.

Bhupesh Bhaghel said that he is attending the funeral on behalf of the All India Congress Party.

"Kamal Nath ji and I have been instructed by the All India Congress Party to attend the last journey of Mulayam Singh ji and under that, I will go to Bhopal now and again from Bhopal to Saifai with Kamal Nath Ji," Baghel said.

Mulayam passed away at 82 at the Medanta Hospital in Gurugram on Monday at 8.16 am.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Baghel will represent the Congress party at the funeral of Yadav.

Congress veteran leader Mallikarjun Kharge will also take part in the funeral which will take place in Mulayam's native village of Saifai in Uttar Pradesh's Etawah district on Tuesday, as the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha. Kharge is contesting the election of the party president, so he will not join as the party's official leader.

Meanwhile, condolences poured in after the demise of the veteran Samajwadi Party leader and former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh.

Mulayam Singh passed away at 82 at Gurugram's Medanta Hospital due to age-related ailments. He was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of the hospital last Sunday after his health deteriorated. He is survived by two sons, Akhilesh and Prateek.

National General Secretary of Samajwadi Party, Ram Gopal Yadav said, "The politics of the country became poor due to the death of Netaji. The way he started politics after his entry into it, and the way he brought the common man to the forefront. Those who did not know the route to Lucknow and Delhi were also made MLAs and MPs."

Mulayam Singh Yadav remained almost synonymous with the politics of the state. Fondly called "Netaji", he was well-versed in the politics of India's most populous state.

Born on November 22, 1939, in Saifai village of Etawah district, Mulayam Singh rose quickly in politics and became the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh thrice; he also served in the Union government once as the Defence Minister.

He was elected 10 times as MLA and 7 times as Lok Sabha MP.

His career began when he was elected MLA in 1967 at the age of 28. He founded the Samajwadi Party on October 4, 1992, and soon turned it into a regional party based in Uttar Pradesh.