'He taught me to love and respect all beings', says Rahul on Rajiv Gandhi's death anniversary

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday penned an emotional note for his father and late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, on his 28th death anniversary. He described his father as gentle, loving and affectionate.

"My father was gentle, loving, kind & affectionate. He taught me to love & respect all beings. To never hate. To forgive. I miss him. On his death anniversary, I remember my father with love & gratitude," Rahul Gandhi wrote on his Twitter handle.

He tagged an old image of his father and a picture of himself paying his respects.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also paid tributes to her father calling him her "hero."

She also shared an image from the past in which she could be seen hugging Rajiv Gandhi.

Along with the picture the Congress leader also shared few stanzas from Harivansh Rai Bachchan's famous poem 'Agneepath'.

"You will always be my hero", she wrote along with the image.

Earlier in the day, United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Rahul and Priyanka paid floral tribute to Rajiv Gandhi at Veer Bhumi.

Priyanka's husband Robert Vadra was also present with the Gandhi family and also paid obeisance.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former President Pranab Mukherjee too paid homage to the former prime minister.

Born on August 20, 1944, Rajiv Gandhi had represented Uttar Pradesh's Amethi parliamentary constituency four times.

A recipient of Bharat Ratna, Rajiv Gandhi served as the sixth Prime Minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984.

Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) suicide bomber during an election rally in Tamil Nadu's Sriperumbudur on May 21, 1991.

He was cremated at Veer Bhumi, located on the banks of the river Yamuna.