Respect for monarchy would never be same again, says ex-foreign min Natwar Singh on Elizabeth II's demise

Former Foreign Minister Natwar Singh on Friday said Queen Elizabeth II in her interactions was very professional and humble and asserted that respect for monarchy would never be the same again as it used to be in the last 70 years.

"This has never ever happened in British history that someone ruled for 70 years. It is a constitutional monarchy, She earned a good name in the last 70 years. Whenever I spoke to her, she spoke with dignity and was very professional," Singh told ANI.

Talking about the legacy of Elizabeth II, Singh said, "Her son Prince Charles now is King Charles and he must have seen his mother closely. Still, I believe the respect for monarchy which was there during Elizabeth's term will not be that as it used to be."

Queen Elizabeth II marked seventy years on the throne this year and is the oldest and longest-reigning monarch in British history.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday also condoled the death of the British Queen as he hailed her inspiring leadership.

Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister recalled his memorable meetings with the Queen during his UK visits in 2015 and 2018.

Buckingham Palace issued a statement announcing the demise of the Queen on September 8. The statement referred to the Queen's eldest son, Prince of Wales, Charles as the new King ascending over the queen who reigned for 70 years and 7 months.

Born on April 21, 1926, at 17 Bruton Street in Mayfair, London as Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, Queen was the oldest child of the Duke and Duchess of York - who later became King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.

Condolences poured in from around the world. Leaders and politicians took to Twitter to mourn the death of the British Queen.

After the demise of Queen Elizabeth II, her eldest son Charles, who took the regnal name of Charles III, has become the new monarch. 10-day mourning was declared over the death of Elizabeth II, who was a formal head of state in 15 countries.

As per the documents seen by The Politico, Thursday was declared as "D-Day" and each following day leading up to the funeral will be referred to as "D+1," "D+2" till the tenth of her death.

The code for conveying the message of the Queen's death is "London bridge is down." What will follow is a vast security operation to manage crowds and travel chaos, the report said.

According to documents seen by Politico, the Royal family will next announce plans for the Queen's funeral. Ten days after Queen's death, the newly appointed UK Prime Minister Liz Truss will be the first member of the government to make a statement.

Aside from the statement from the PM and other members of the government, gun salutes will be arranged at all saluting stations.

The state funeral will be held at Westminster Abbey and there will be a committal service in St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.

Thereafter, Queen Elizabeth will be buried in the castle's King George VI Memorial Chapel.

( With inputs from ANI )