Jaipal cremated with full state honours

Senior Congress leader and former federal minister S Jaipal Reddy was cremated yesterday with full state honours.Relatives, friends and leaders of Congress and other parties bid adieu to Reddy, who died on Sunday following a brief illness. He was 77. The Telangana government yesterday announced a state funeral for Reddy.Top Congress leaders including Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mallikarjun Kharge, former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah, former Karnataka assembly speaker Ramesh Kumar, and Telangana Congress chief Uttam Kumar Reddy, Telangana minister T Srinivas Yadav and leaders of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) were among those who attended the funeral.Earlier, the mortal remains of the deceased leader were brought from his residence in Jubliee Hills to state Congress headquarters at Gandhi Bhavan, where several leaders and workers of the party paid their last respects.In New Delhi, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu broke down as he made obituary reference on death Reddy.“For 40 years, he had been a friend, a senior and also at times he used to guide me because I am six years younger to him,” Naidu said, recalling the time spent with him and said that his knowledge, depth of understanding and mastery over various languages were remarkable.Reddy was a member of the Lok Sabha five times, four-time MLA and two-time Rajya Sabha member.Naidu remembered his days in the Andhra Pradesh assembly when he shared bench with Reddy and raised people’s issues. The two used to discuss various issues over breakfast before the assembly session.