Congress President Sonia Gandhi along with Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit paid respects to the Father of the Nation.
President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi on his 68th death anniversary at the Gandhi memorial Rajghat.
Vice president Hamid Ansari, defence minister Manohar Parrikar and Urban Development minister M Venkaiah Naidu were present at the meet in Rajghat. After offering floral tributes at the Gandhi memorial, an inter-religious prayer was also conducted.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi along with Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit paid respects to the Father of the Nation. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also visited the memorial.
The Father of the Nation was assassinated on January 30, 1948, also observed as Martyr's Day in the country.
Paying respect to Gandhi, Modi tweeted, "Salutations to beloved Bapu on his Punya Tithi".
He also paid tributes to all those who had laid down their lives for the country.
"Remembering the valour of all martyrs, who gave their lives for the Nation. Their sacrifices remain etched in our memory," he tweeted.
BJP leader L K Advani, Union Ministers Mahesh Sharma, Babul Supriyo and Rao Inderjit Singh as well as the three service chiefs — General Dalbir Singh, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha and Admiral Robin Dhowan were also present at the meet at Rajghat to pay tributes to the Mahatma and to those who sacrificed their lives for the country.
On Saturday, Dr Mahesh Sharma, the minister of state for Tourism and Culture also inaugurated a 25-panel exhibition titled 'Mohan se Mahatma Tak' highlighting the experiences and struggles that shaped Gandhi's life and led him to become the Father of the Nation.
Babul Supriyo, minister of state for urban development presided over the event, which was organized by Rajghat Samadhi Samiti –under the MoUD.
A nine-day long discourse by Shri Morari Bapu, of Sri Ramcharitmanas fame, on Manas Rajghat Katha interpreting Gandhi's life, work and philosophy on the lines of Ramcharitmanas was also organised.
Meanwhile, a group of nearly 65 civil society organisations chose the occasion to come together under the banner of People's March in defence of the republic, to highlight different social issues like increasing attacks on women, Dalits, minorities, people with disabilities and farmer suicides.
The group conducted a protest march from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar on Saturday afternoon.
"We chose this day to highlight different issues that the country is grappling with right now. There are instances of growing intolerance towards minorities, there is no freedom of expression as well as atrocities towards the downtrodden," said social activist Shabnam Hashmi.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}