Congress leaders, family members pay tributes to Beant Singh

Congress leaders and family members of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh Saturday paid him floral tributes on his 24th death anniversary at his memorial here.

An all faith prayer meeting was held in the memory of the 12th chief minister of Punjab.

Beant Singh was assassinated in a bomb blast at the secretariat complex in Chandigarh on August 31, 1995. Seventeen people were killed in the blast.

Ravneet Singh Bittu, grandson of the slain Congress leader, pledged to carry forward the development policies and schemes initiated by Beant Singh.

The Khanna MLA and grandson of Beant Singh, Gurkirat Singh Kotli, recalled the good deeds of his grandfather and vowed to keep aloft his high moral values in public life.

Kotli said Beant Singh had made a tremendous contribution to restore the unity and brotherhood in the state and "we will not let divisive forces disrupt the social fabric of the country".

He said Beant Singh guarded people's interests for four decades and laid down his life for the state, an example rarely seen.

Prominent Congress leaders who marked their attendance at the memorial included cabinet ministers Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, Balbir Singh Sidhu, Sadhu Singh Dharamsot and Bharat Bhushan Ashu.