"He stood like rock against emergency": Amit Shah attends 'Antim Ardas' SAD patron Parkash Singh Badal

Sri Muktsar Sahib (Punjab) [India], May 4 : Union Minister Amit Shah on Thursday, while attending the Antim Ardas of Shirom Akali Dal (SAD) patron Parkash Singh Badal, said that the former Punjab Chief Minister stood like a "rock" against emergency imposed by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975.

"Badal Saheb's departure is a big loss for the country. In Shirom Akali Dal, Parkash Singh Badal stood like a rock against emergency to protect democracy," Shah said.

Shah and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla attended Antim Ardas of Badal at Badal village in Lambi of Sri Muktsar Sahib in Punjab.

Congress leader Sachin Pilot was also present there.

Parkash Singh Badal, who became Punjab's chief minister five times and had been part of the movement for a separate Punjabi-speaking state, died at a private hospital in Mohali on April 25. He was 95.

He was admitted to Fortis Hospital in Mohali on April 16 after complaining of breathlessness, where he passed away on April 27.

Apart from being the youngest Chief Minister of Punjab, he also held the record for being the Chief Minister for the longest time.

Meanwhile, Badal's ashes were immersed at Kiratpur Sahib in Punjab by his son and SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal along with his family members and relatives.

Sukhbir Badal's estranged cousin Manpreet Singh Badal, Akali leaders Prem Singh Chandumajra, Bikram Singh Majithia and Daljit Singh Cheema were also present. Parkash Singh Badal's last rites were performed on April 27.

Badal was the Chief Minister of Punjab five times from 1970-71, 1977-80, 1997-2002, and 2007-2017.