A day after 111-year-old chief seer of the Siddaganga Mutt, Shivakumara Swamy was laid to rest in Tumakuru, the Congress has targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not attending his funeral. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara took to Twitter to question the Prime Minister’s absence and added that repeated requests to confer the Lingayat seer the Bharat Ratna have gone in vain.
“Swamiji (Sri Shivakumara Swami of Siddaganga Mutt) served humanity. PM should have attended the cremation ceremony. I am not saying where else PM should have gone. I am not a small-minded person. If PM would have attended, it would have raised the level of his office,” Parameshwara said, speaking to the media on Wednesday.
Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had come to Tumakuru to pay last respects on behalf of Prime Minister Modi on Tuesday. The body of the deceased seer was kept on display at the Gosala Siddeshwara Vedike at the mutt throughout the day and lakhs of devotees turned up to offer their tributes.
“PM Modi attends celebrity weddings, meets movie stars but skips the funeral of our NaDedāDuva devaru, who dedicated his life to help the poor and the marginalised. Repeated requests to confer Bharat Ratna on him have gone in vain,” Parameshwara tweeted.
Agencies
