Bipin Rawat funeral
General Bipin Rawat cremated with full military honours in Delhi, daughters perform last rites
New Delhi/IBNS: India's first Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat, and his wife Madhulika Rawat were cremated on Friday evening with full state military honours at Delhi's Brar Square Crematorium.
The cremation rites were performed by their daughters, Kritika and Tarini.
The bodies of General Rawat and his wife were laid side-by-side on the funeral pyre.
Hours earlier, at the same crematorium, the General's top aide, Brigadier LS Lidder, was also cremated.
Rawat along with his wife and 11 others, including his staff and crew members, have died in the Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu's Coonoor, country's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh officially declared on Wednesday evening.
General Rawat was accorded 17 gun-salute in the elaborate funeral ceremony which involved 800 military personnel.
Earlier in the day, after the bodies of the General and his wife were brought to the crematorium, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stood in silent tribute as military bugles sounded in the background.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also paid his respects.
The 13 bodies were flown back Thursday on a C130-J Super Hercules aircraft that landed at Delhi's Palam airport.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and NSA Ajit Doval paid their tributes as well.
Only three of the 13 bodies have been identified so far-that of General Rawat and his wife, Madhulika Rawat, and Brigadier LS Lidder.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had paid his tributes to General Rawat, his wife and the 11 armed force personnel at the Palam Air Force base.
On Friday morning a sea of mourners visited Gen Rawat's residence, where their mortal remains were kept to allow the public to pay their final respects.
Among those who came to offer condolences were Home Minister Amit Shah and NSA Ajit Doval.
Politicians cutting across party lines also came to express their grief, including Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and the chief ministers of Uttarakhand (PS Dhami) and Delhi (Arvind Kejriwal).
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