Final rites of Nand Kumar Patel, son performed

RAIGARH/RAIPUR: The final rites of Chhattisgarh Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh, who were killed in the Naxal attack on Saturday, were performed with state honours at their native village Nandeli in Raigarh district today.

Patel's younger son Umesh performed the rites, in the presence of Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, Chief Minister Raman Singh and a host of other leaders.

The funeral procession started from the family's house in Nandeli and converged at a place on the outskirts of the village where Nand Kumar's parents had been cremated years ago.

Thousands of villagers from the region took part in the procession, raising "long live Nand Kumar" and anti-state government slogans.

Apart from the Chief Minister and Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in Chhattisgarh Assembly Ravindra Choubey, Leader of Opposition in Madhya Pradesh Assembly Ajay Singh, Madhya Pradesh Congress Chief Kantilal Bhuriya, Chhattisgarh Home Minister Nankiram Kanwar, other cabinet ministers and several senior Congress leaders were present.

Patel and his elder son Dinesh were killed when heavily armed Maoists ambushed a convoy of Congress leaders in Bastar district on Saturday, killing 27 people and injuring 37.