Two days after the death of Karnataka's iconic Lingayat seer Shivakumara Swami, Congress' G Parameshwara slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not attending the funeral.
Taking to Twitter Parameshwara said: "PM Modi attends celebrity weddings, meets movie stars but skips the funeral of our NaDedaDuva devaru."
Amidst a sea of humanity, Swami was laid to rest with state honours in the Siddaganga Mutt after about 10-lakh people paid homage to his mortal remains on Tuesday.
After a three-round gun salute by the state police as a mark of respect, playing of the National Anthem and sounding of bugles by a music band, the seer's frail body clad in saffron robes was lowered in the ground in a sitting posture as per the customs in the Mutt's newly-built temple.
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The 111-year-old popular and influential seer of the powerful Lingayat community died on Monday in the Mutt after protracted illness.
About 100 seers and swamis of various Lingayat and Vokkaliga Mutts from across the state were present on the occasion along with thousands of the seer's devotees from all over the country.
As the temple premises could not accommodate more than 100 people inside, the last rites, including seer's burial, was beamed live on giant screens erected in and around the Mutt for viewing by thousands of people.
State Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy handed over the Tricolour the seer's body was draped with to Siddalinga before the last rites.
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Baba Ramdev, former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, Union Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, state Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara, state Home Minister M.B. Patil, state BJP's unit President B.S. Yeddyurappa and former Congress chief ministers Siddaramaiah and S.M. Krishna were among the several prominent leaders present on the occasion.
Elaborate security arrangements were made around the Mutt and about 3,000 police personnel were deployed in the town to ensure peaceful movement of people for the last glimpse of the seer and divert vehicular traffic from the Mutt area.
Defence Minister Nirmal Sitharaman flew to Tumakuru, about 70km northwest of Bengaluru, in a military helicopter from the state capital and paid her respects to the seer by laying a floral wreath on behalf of the President, Prime Minister and the Union Government.
Chants of "Swamiji ki jai" and "Bharat Ratna beku" (we demand Bharat Ratna for Swami) by hundreds of devotees and students of the Mutt's schools rent the air.
(With inputs from PTI)
