Rahul Gandhi, Amit Shah among others pay last respects to Sharad Yadav at his residence

NEW DELHI, (PTI): Cutting across party lines, top political leaders gathered at the residence of Sharad Yadav in Delhi’s Chhatarpur on Friday to pay their last respect to the socialist stalwart who passed away a day earlier.

Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president J P Nadda, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi and ex-chief minister of Bihar Rabri Devi were among the leaders who paid tributes to Sharad Yadav at his residence.

Later, Shah described the demise of Sharad Yadav as an ”irreparable loss” for the country. ”In the last five decades, Sharad Ji raised people-centric issues and promoted socialist ideas till his last breath,” he said.

Rahul Gandhi reached Yadav’s residence around 8.30 a.m. The Congress leader travelled to Delhi from Punjab where the Bharat Jodo Yatra is camped presently. Talking to reporters later, he recounted a conversation with Yadav, adding that he learnt a lot from him. The former congress president said that his grandmother Indira Gandhi and Yadav were political rivals but always maintained a relationship of mutual respect.

Former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi also arrived at Yadav’s residence to pay her last respects. Yadav merged his Loktrantrik Janata Dal, a party he floated in 2018, with the RJD in March 2022. Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, MP Ramesh Bidhuri, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s wife Savitri Singh, Haryana Chief Minister ML Khatter, Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav and RJD’s Manoj Jha were also among the leaders who paid tributes to Yadav.

Yadav died at a private hospital in Gurugram on Thursday. He was 75. He is survived by his wife, a daughter and a son. His mortal remains will be taken to his native village Ankhmau in the Hoshangabad district in Madhya Pradesh, where the cremation will be performed on Saturday. (PTI)