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OBITUARY

NARENDRA MODI, Prime Minister PRANAB MUKHERJEE, Former President NITISH KUMAR, Bihar Chief Minister
“During his long years in “Shri Fernandes was a long “A new party was formed
public life, George Sahab standing friend from the under his leadership and
never deviated from his Opposition and colleague guidance. His guidance
political ideology. He in the Parliament. A has always taught us a
resisted the Emergency committed socialist, lot. His vision has always
tooth and nail. His activist for the cause of the influenced the way we work
simplicity and humility deprived and an inspiring for people today. Given his
were noteworthy. My leader, he witnessed and condition, his death is a
thoughts are with his contributed to different kind of deliverance for him.
family, friends and lakhs of phases of our Nation’s It would be my resolve not
people grieving.” building.” to forget his guidance.”

age on the behalf of the nation there the Indian nation and her ideals, rep- ram, having a prolonged 50-year old
were floral tributes on behalf of the In- resented all inclusive India. He was association with George, was present
dian Federation of Working Journalists bed-ridden for the past several years at the funeral to give him an emotional
and its president K. Vikram Rao, who being looked after by his devoted farewell.
was also an accused in the Baroda dy- wife, Laila, daughter of the legendary, He and his wife, Sushma, presently
namite case. Humayun Kabir, a successor to Maulana External Affairs Minister, had taken up
Among those who were present give Azad in the Union cabinet. There was a a number of cases on behalf of George,
a tearful farewell to the much-admired convergence of India’s religious tradi- including the Baroda Dynamite case.
solider of Mother India, the Tibetans tions. Laila, a devout Muslim, supervised Among the Union Ministers Ram Vilas
with their rosaries and Buddhist prayer the last rites, insisted at the electric Paswan, Ravi Shanker Prasad, Dr. Harsh
books. They had lost their country to crematorium. Their Christian son is Vardhan were present. Georges former
the Communist regime of the People’s going to bury the ashes at a cemetery. cabinet colleague and the BJP veteran,
Republic of China in late fifties of the He had admirers across the political L.K. Advani, in spite of his frail health,
20th century. spectrum. was present to pay homage to the
Similarly, there were some Bur- The Congress Party was represented departed soul.
mese praying for him. They had found by no other than Dr. Manmohan Singh, With his departure, the curtain
a guardian in him, when they had taken who served India as her Prime Minister of the firebrand committed socialist
refuge in India following the military for 10 years. The Bihar Chief Minister, movement appears to have been finally
crack-down on the pro-democracy Nitish Kumar, who considered George drawn till a new George appears on the
National League of Democracy, which his political guru, had arrived in Delhi country’s political horizon. It appears to
had won the elections in their country to be present in the funeral. Swaraj be unlikely in our lifetime.
under Aung San Su Keyi. Kaushal, a senior Supreme Court law-
George, a born rebel, strengthened yer and a former governor of Mizo- LETTERS@TEHELKA.COM

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