President, Vice Prez, PM pay tributes to Gandhi

New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice President Hamid Ansari and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday led the nation in paying homage to Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi on his death anniversary which is observed as Martyrs’ Day. Mr Mukherjee, Vice-President Hamid Ansari and Mr Modi visited the Rajghat and offered wreath at Gandhiji?s memorial.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu were among those who paid homage to the Father of the Nation at Rajghat, Union Ministers Mahesh Sharma, Bahul Supriyo and Rao Inderjit Singh, the three service chiefs – General Dalbir Singh, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha and Admiral Robin Dhowan were also present at Rajghat to pay their tributes to Mahatma Gandhi. Congress president Sonia Gandhi, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, BJP veteran L K Advani, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and leaders of other political parties and people from different walks of life also paid tribute to the Father of the Nation on the occasion. An inter-religion prayer was also held at Rajghat on this occasion. A gun salute was given and a group of singers sang devotional songs. Earlier, the Prime Minister tweeted, ”Salutations to beloved Bapu on his Punya Tithi.” ”Remembering the valour of all martyrs who gave their lives for the Nation. Their sacrifices remain etched in our memory,” he said. (PTI)