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Friday, Apr 01, 2005

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Leaders condole death of Haryana Ministers

By Our Staff Reporter

— PTI

Kiran Choudhury and her daughter at their residence in New Delhi on Thursday where the mortal remains of the Haryana Minister, Surender Singh, arrived from Saharanpur on Thursday.

NEW DELHI, MARCH 31. S hocked over the death of the two Haryana Ministers, O.P Jindal and Surender Singh, in a helicopter crash near Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, leaders across the political spectrum today expressed their condolences.

In a message, the President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, said he was praying to the Almighty to give the family members of the deceased the strength to bear the irreparable losses. The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, currently in Mauritius on a trip, also offered his deepest condolences to the families at their tragic loss.

The Congress and the United Progressive Alliance chairperson, Sonia Gandhi, wrote letters of condolence to the former Haryana Chief Minister, Bansi Lal, and the Member of Parliament, Naveen Jindal, expressing her deepest sympathy. "At this time of grief my thoughts are with you and your family,'' she wrote.

Saddened

— PTI

People paying last respects to the mortal remains of O.P. Jindal, at the Jindal House in Hissar. Savitri Jindal, wife and son Naveen Jindal, console each other.

"Saddened" at the untimely demise of the two Ministers, the External Affairs Minister, K. Natwar Singh, also expressed his profound shock at the incident.

"We had known both the deceased and their families and offer our heartfelt condolences to Bansi Lal, Kiran Chaudhary, Naveen Jindal and all the members of the Jindal family. Only a few days ago, we had met them both and they were looking forward to their tenures as Ministers,'' he said.

The former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and the Bharatiya Janata Party president, L.K. Advani, also expressed shock and grief. "I am shocked to learn about the tragic demise of Mr. Jindal and Mr. Singh," said Mr. Vajpayee in a message. Mr. Advani also spoke to Mr. Bansi Lal to convey his condolences.

Senior Congress leader Motilal Vora said the State and the party have lost popular representatives of the people. "I was stunned after hearing the news of the death of Mr. Jindal and Mr. Singh. I knew Mr. Jindal for years as an industrialist as well as a popular public figure. We are extremely shocked and grieved over the death of the two leaders,'' he said.

Describing the death of the two leaders as a loss to the country, the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president, Ram Babu Sharma, offered his sympathy to the bereaved families.

"The void created by their sudden death can never be filled and it is an irreparable loss to the Congress. They were dynamic leaders,'' he said.

The Union Minister for Urban Development and Parliamentary Affairs, Ghulam Nabi Azad, expressed shock at the accident.

In separate messages to the bereaved families, the Defence Minister, Pranab Mukerjee, expressed his sympathy.

The Communist Party of India (CPI) also expressed disbelief at the death of the two Haryana Ministers.

"I am shocked to learn about the tragic demise of Mr. Jindal and Mr. Singh," said the CPI general secretary, A.B. Bardhan.

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