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Final rites of Congress leader and lawmaker Pradip Giri were performed at Pashupatinath Temple crematorium on Sunday late afternoon with state honours.
Nepali Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand, and opposition leader and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli reached the cremation site and offered final tribute to the leader. Ahead of the final rites at Pashupatinath Temple crematorium that lies next to the Bagmati River, Giri's body was kept at the Nepali Congress Central Office in Sanepa, Lalitpur. Senior Politicos including former President Ram Baran Yadav also reached the Mediciti Hospital earlier in the morning to pay tribute. Giri, who was suffering from throat cancer and pneumonia, died at the age of 74 at 9:30 PM (NST) on Saturday. The Nepali Congress has decided to lower the party flag at the party's central and all other offices under it at half-mast for three days on August 21, 22 and 23 to pay high respects to its deceased leader Pradeep Giri. The party has also put off all its programs except the condolence-paying ones for three days. An emergency meeting of the central working committee held at the party's central office, Sanepa, today, passed a condolence proposal, expressing sorrow over the demise of socialist thinker, former central committee member and House of Representatives member Giri. Also, the Nepali Congress has decided to close the party central office and all offices under it on August 22, Monday and to keep a condolence book at the central and district offices until September 1, the 13th day of Giri's demise, Party Chief Secretary Krishna Prasad Poudel said. A condolence meeting would be held at the party central office and all the district offices on September 1. The meeting concluded that the demise of a great intellectual leader Pradeep Giri has caused a big loss to the Nepali democratic movement, the Nepali Congress, the entire parliamentary exercise and the nation as a whole. Paying high respects to the late Giri, the meeting wished for the eternal peace of the departed soul and expressed condolences to the bereaved family and all the party members. A two minutes silence was also observed in the meeting paying tributes to the late Giri and prying eternal peace to his departed soul. Born in Siraha in eastern Nepal, Giri had earned a Master's Degree in Philosophy and Economics from Jawaharlal University, India. Giri's father Netra Lal Giri was the NC leader. Inspired by his father, he joined NC in 1961. Giri spent four years in jail during the Panchayati regime. He was a popular leader among leaders and cadres. Giri has also authored over two dozen books. A Gandhian politician, he was among a few leaders in Nepal who could interpret Marxism. He was a two-time member of the Constituent Assembly, which drafted the Constitution of Nepal in 2015. He, however, refused to sign the document, saying the process was flawed and the constitution failed to address the concerns of various sections of the society--Tharus, Madheshis and Janajatis. He had his sympathy for those who were protesting against the constitution-writing process even as top leaders of his party rushed to finalize the document. A seasoned orator, Giri was well-versed in Marxism, often putting some communists, who claim to follow a Marxist ideology, to shame. (ANI)
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