Congress Seeks Space For Manmohan Singh Memorial, Writes To PM Modi

New Delhi: The Congress has approached the Central government seeking a separate memorial place for former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Party president Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the matter on Wednesday.

Congress general secretary Avinash Pandey said that Kharge and Singh’s family are in talks with the government.

They have suggested that the venue of the funeral could also serve as a memorial. Kharge mentioned that the proposal aligns with the tradition of honouring statesmen and former prime ministers by creating memorials at their funeral sites.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced in the evening that Dr Singh, who passed away on Thursday night at the age of 92, will be accorded a State funeral with full military honours at Nigambodh Ghat on Saturday.

However, the intimation didn’t mention whether it will serve as a memorial also.

The Congress-led UPA government had refused demands for separate memorial spaces for eminent personalities due to shortage of space. In 2013, the UPA government decided to establish a common memorial ground, Rashtriya Smriti Sthal, at Raj Ghat.