Rich tributes paid to Kesri

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, OCT. 25. The President, Mr. K. R. Narayanan, today led several political leaders in paying tributes to the former AICC chief, Mr. Sitaram Kesri, who passed away here last night after a prolonged illness.

Mr. Narayanan, the Vice-President, Mr. Krishan Kant, the Congress president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, the former Prime Ministers, Mr. V .P. Singh, Mr. S. Chandrashekhar, Mr. P. V. Narasimha Rao and Mr. Deve Gowda, the Home Minister, Mr. L. K. Advani, the BJP chief, Mr. Bangaru Laxman, and the Lok Sabha Speaker, Mr. G. M. C. Balayogi, were among those who visited Mr. Kesri's Purana Qila Road residence to pay respects.

The President termed Mr. Kesri's death a ``great loss to the country''. In a message the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee,said ``the country has lost an able parliamentarian who will always be remembered for his service to the weaker sections''.

Ms. Sonia Gandhi, describing her predecessor ``as a secularist to the core'' said his death was a loss not only to the party but also to the country. The Congress Working Committee in its condolence resolution said the nation had lost a great patriot and the party a man of exceptional organisational skills.

Mr. Advani said that in Mr. Kesri's death the nation had lost a crucial link with the older generation of politicians while Mr. Narasimha Rao expressed the hope that the younger generation of Congressmen would ``follow in Mr. Kesri's footsteps''.

Mr. Digvijay Singh, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, said Mr. Kesri was a Congressman to the core. The former Union Finance Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, described him as a distinguished freedom fighter while the CWC member, Mr. Jitendra Prasada, said his absence would be greatly felt.

The Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, Dr. Farooq Abdullah, said the former Congress president contributed much to the uplift of the downtrodden.

Our Patna Staff Correspondent reports:

Late in the evening, Mr. Kesri's body was brought here by a special aircraft. It was taken to his Danapur residence from where it would be shifted to the Sadaquat ashram. Tomorrow, the body would be taken to Banasghat on the banks of the Ganga and cremated.

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