Manohar Parrikar cremated with full state honours at Goa's Miramar beach

New Delhi: Goa chief minister and former Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar was cremated with state honours at Panaji on Monday, with thousands bidding him a fond farewell.

The final rites were performed as per the Vedic Hindu rituals. Parrikar’s son lit the pyre.

BJP president Amit Shah, some Union ministers and chief ministers of BJP-ruled states attended the funeral at Miramar.

Parrikar’s oldest son Utpal lit the funeral pyre.

Parrikar’s final farewell

The final journey of Goa’s ‘son of the soil’ began from Kala Academy in Panjim. A teeming column of mourners followed his pyre on foot and vehicles.

The funeral procession started from the Kala Academy where thousands, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid their last respects to former defence minister.

Following the death of Manohar Parrikar, the centre has announced national mourning today and declared the National Flag will fly at half-mast across the country.

Seven days of state Mourning will be observed in the state following the death of Manohar Parrikar.

Parrikar’s political journey

His political journey of about 28 years took him from one high office to other, only culminating in the position that he often referred to as the closest to his heart.

In October 2000, Parrikar became the Chief Minister of the state for the first time. He was the first IIT graduate politician to take reins of the coastal state.

His love for Goa was so earnest that even after he moved to New Delhi to take up the assignment of the country’s Defence Minister, Parrikar left no chance to visit his hometown frequently.

Hence, it wasn’t much of surprise that after the BJP failed to get a complete majority after the 2016 state assembly polls, the allies stated their faith in Parrikar.

Parrikar not only transformed Goa’s infrastructure but also oversaw the first surgical strikes of 2014 as the Defence Minister.

Born in a middle-class Gaud Saraswat Brahmin family, his trademark image of wearing a simple shirt and trouser and waiting patiently in queues at different public places will remain itched for long in public memories.

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