Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], December 27 : Uttar Pradesh Minister Danish Azad Ansari on Friday expressed grief over the demise of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh while offering condolences to his family.
"We are deeply saddened by his demise. Our condolences are with his family. We wish for peace for his soul," Ansari, who is the Minister of State for Minority Welfare, Muslim Waqf and Hajj in the Uttar Pradesh government, told ANI.
Meanwhile, Ansari reacted to the Pichda Dalit Alpsankhyak (PDA) Abhiyaan launched by the Samajwadi Party (SP) and said that they didn't remember backward classes and Dalits when they were in power from 2012 to 2017.
"Samajwadi party did not even remember backward classes and Dalits from 2012-2017. During this tenure, the maximum torture was done to the Dalits and minorities...This Abhiyan is just to fulfil Samajwadi Party's political agenda," Ansari said.
The last rites of former PM Singh will be performed near Rajghat on Saturday and the mortal remains will be kept at AICC HQ for public viewing tomorrow between 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM.
Several politicians and personalities from all walks of life have been expressing their sorrow over the demise of former PM Manmohan Singh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday night said that condoled the demise of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh saying that India mourns the loss of one of its most distinguished leaders.
Manmohan Singh passed away at AIIMS, Delhi, on Thursday evening at the age of 92 due to age-related medical conditions. He had a sudden loss of consciousness at home after which he was rushed to the AIIMS Delhi.
Manmohan Singh was born on September 26, 1932. Apart from being an economist, Manmohan Singh served as Reserve Bank of India governor from 1982-1985. He was the 13th PM of India with his tenure from 2004-2014 and was the longest-serving PM after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi.
Serving as the finance minister of India in PV Narasimha Rao's government, Singh has been given credit for economic liberalisation in the country in 1991. The reforms made the Indian economy more accessible to foreign investors, which increased FDI and reduced government control. It greatly contributed to the country's economic growth.
Manmohan Singh's government also introduced the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), which later came to be known as MGNREGA.
The Right to Information Act (RTI) was passed in 2005 under the Manmohan Singh government, which made the transparency of information between the government and the public better.
He retired from the Rajya Sabha earlier this year after serving for 33 years.