TN CM, Stalin pay respects to Vajpayee's ashes

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and DMK working president MK Stalin paid respects to the ashes of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the state BJP office here on Thursday.

Palaniswami, his deputy O Panneerselvam and Stalin, who is also the Leader of Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, paid floral tributes to the BJP stalwart’s ashes kept in the BJP office before taking out for immersion.

Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) MP Anbumani Ramadoss, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Rajya Sabha member Kanimozhi, former Union ministers Dayanidhi Maran and TR Baalu also paid tributes to Vajpayee’s ashes, among others.

The ashes of the three-time former Prime Minister will be immersed at six locations in Tamil Nadu — Chennai, Kanniyakumari, Rameswaram, Erode, Srirangam and Madurai — on August 26.

The urns containing the ashes are kept at the state BJP office, Kamalalayam in T Nagar for the public to pay homage.

On Wednesday, the funerary urn containing Vajpayee’s ashes was brought from Delhi by state BJP president Tamilisai Soundararajan and was taken in a procession to Kamalalayam. The BJP had earlier decided that Vajpayee’s ashes would be immersed in rivers across the country, starting with the Ganga in Haridwar. The 93-year-old BJP patriarch died in New Delhi on August 16, following a prolonged illness.

He was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the national capital on June 11 with a kidney tract infection, urinary tract infection, low urine output and chest congestion.

DMK working president MK Stalin and leaders of various other parties on Thursday condoled the death of veteran journalist Kuldeep Nayar. 

“Saddened by the death of veteran journalist and author #KuldeepNayar. He championed Freedom of the Press and was an ardent advocate of human rights. My condolences to his family, friends and the fraternity of journalists,” he tweeted. 

Nayar, a fierce proponent of press freedom and civil liberties, died in Delhi. He was suffering from pneumonia. 

MDMK leader Vaiko said Nayar was a great thinker and writer. “I still cannot forget the speech he gave in Delhi after releasing an English version of my book ‘Eelathil Inakolai Idayathil Ratham’ on violence unleashed against Tamils in Sri Lanka,” he said. MMK leader MH Jawahirullah expressed his condolence.