In fond tributes to his mother Hiraben following her death, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday he always felt in her the presence of a trinity combining an ascetic's journey, a selfless doer and a life committed to values.
Modi's mother Hiraben passed away at a hospital in Ahmedabad on Friday. She was 99.
A bulletin from the UN Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Centre, where she was admitted on Wednesday after her health deteriorated, announced the news of her demise.
“Hiraben Modi passed away on 30/12/2022 at 3.30 am during the treatment at U N Mehta Heart Hospital," the medical bulletin said.
“A glorious century rests at God's feet,” Modi said in a tweet.
Prime Minister Modi recalled that when he met her on her 100th birthday, she had told him: “work with intelligence and live life with purity”.
President Droupadi Murmu on Friday condoled the passing away of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother Hiraben.
Murmu said Modi imbibed the values of Hiraben in his life.
"I pray for the peace of the holy soul. My condolences to the family!" the president tweeted.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday expressed deep sadness over the death of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother and said her sacrificial ascetic life will always be remembered.
In tweets in Hindi, Shah said he was very sad to know about the demise of the prime minister's mother.
The home minister said a mother is the first friend and teacher of a person's life and the pain of losing a mother is undoubtedly the biggest pain in the world.
"The struggles faced by Hira Ba to nurture the family are a role model for all. Her sacrificial ascetic life will always be in our memory. The entire nation stands with Prime Minister Modi and his family in this hour of grief. The prayers of crores of people are with you (Modi). Om Shanti," he said.
Hiraben, also called Hiraba, lived at Raysan village near Gandhinagar with Modi's younger brother Pankaj Modi. The prime minister regularly visited Raysan and spent time with his mother during his visits to Gujarat.
BJP leaders paying tributes
BJP leaders on Friday paid tributes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother Hiraben, who passed away in Ahmedabad two days after she was hospitalised.Expressing grief, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said mother's demise creates a void in life that is impossible to fill.
"I am deeply pained by the passing away of Hira Ba, mother of Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi. The death of a mother leaves such a void in one's life that is impossible to fill. I express my condolences to the Prime Minister and his entire family in this hour of grief," Singh said in a tweet.
Paying tributes, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said it was the values which Hiraben imparted to her family through a difficult life full of struggles that has given the country a leader like Modi.
Her simple and compassionate image will always be with us, he said.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday expressed grief over the passing away of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother and said her virtuous life was an inspiration for all.
Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda on Friday condoled the death of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother Hiraben and said she lived a full life, but one wishes a mother to be around forever.
Tributes from Congress leaders
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi on Friday condoled the demise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother.
"The news of the demise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother Heeraba is very sad.In this difficult time, I express my deepest condolences and affection to him and his family members," Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.
"Deeply saddened to hear about the demise of Smt. Heeraben Modi. My heartfelt condolences to Sri @narendramodi ji on the loss of his beloved mother. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire family in this hour of grief," Kharge said on Twitter
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his Chhattisgarh counterpart Bhupesh Baghel also sent their condolences and prayed for the peace of the departed soul.
The loss of a mother is like "collapse of a main pillar in life, which leads to emptiness in life," Baghel said.
Congress leader P Chidambaram said the passing away of a mother is an irreparable loss.
(With PTI Inputs)
