India’s former PM Manmohan Singh cremated with state honours

By Nidhi Verma

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – The body of Manmohan Singh, the former Indian prime minister whose death has sparked outpourings of grief at home and accolades from abroad, was cremated on Sunday on the banks of the Yamuna River in New Delhi with full state honours.

The funeral was conducted in the Sikh tradition as priests chanted hymns, after Singh’s body, draped in the Indian flag, was carried through the capital on a flower-decked carriage pulled by a ceremonial army truck.

The flag was removed and the body covered with a saffron cloth before it was placed on the pyre.

Since Singh died on Thursday at 92, many have taken up his comment near the end of his 10-year rule that “history will be kinder to me than the contemporary media”.

He was referring to a perception of weak leadership as he headed a coalition government facing numerous charges of corruption, which was thrown out of office in the 2014 election won by his successor Narendra Modi.

Modi, who called Singh one of the nation’s “most distinguished leaders” after his death, attended the funeral, along with President Droupadi Murmu and representatives of various countries. Modi’s government has decided to allocate land for Singh’s memorial.

Singh, considered the architect of India’s economic liberalisation, had criticised Modi’s economic policies such as demonetisation and introducing a goods and services tax.

Singh is survived by his wife and three daughters.

Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi accompanied Singh’s family on the truck to the Nigambodh Ghat cremation site after the procession from party headquarters in New Delhi, where people joined Congress party leaders and members to pay their last respects.

The leaders of the U.S., Canada, France, Sri Lanka, China and Pakistan were among those expressing grief at Singh’s death and highlighting his international contributions. (This story has been refiled to say ‘sparked’, not ‘spark’, in paragraph 1)