President Pratibha Devisingh Patil, vice-president Hamid Ansari, PM Dr Manmohan Singh, Congress chief Mrs Sonia Gandhi and a host of other dignitaries on Sunday condoled the passing away of Sri Satya Sai Baba.
In her message, Ms Patil said Sai Baba was known for his philanthropic and developmental activities. “The divine soul shall always guide and inspire us to work for the progress of the country and the welfare of the poorest sections of society and women,” Ms Patil said. Expressing grief over the passing away of Sai Baba, Dr Singh said: “I learnt of the passing away of Sri Satya Sai Baba with deep and profound sadness. Sri Satya Sai Baba was a spiritual leader who inspired millions to lead a moral and meaningful life even as they followed the religion of their choice. His teachings were rooted in the universal ideals of truth, right conduct, peace, love and non-violence.”
While the PM is unlikely to go to Puttaparthi himself to pay his last respects owing to the inconvenience his security arrangements might cause to the devotees, some ministers might represent the government instead in Puttaparthi as per preliminary indications.
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, BJP chief Nitin Gadkari and NDA working chairman L.K. Advani also expressed grief over the passing away of Sai Baba. Mr Gadkari is expected to visit Puttaparthi.
In her condolence message, Mrs Gandhi said: “The news of the death of Sai Baba of Puttaparthi has greatly pained me. He was a spiritual person in whom lakhs of people had faith. In his lifetime, he inspired the people of this country and those abroad towards spiritualism and religion.”