Devender Rana: Leaders mourn ‘voice of Jammu’; PM Modi, CM Abdullah express grief

Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir BJP MLA Devender Singh Rana, who passed away in a hospital in Haryana, was cremated on Friday with full honours in Jammu, where thousands of people and top political leaders, cutting across party lines, bid adieu to him.

The last rites of Rana, known as “voice of Jammu”, were performed at the Shastri Nagar crematorium, where his mortal remains were ferried in a flower-decked vehicle and received Union Territory (UT) honours.

Amid chants of “Rana sahib amar rahein”, thousands of mourners with tearful eyes paid their respects at his residence soon after his body arrived from Faridabad.

In the presence of JK Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Jitendra Singh, JK Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary, minister Satesh Sharma, BJP Jammu and Kashmir chief Ravinder Raina, BJP MLAs and MP Jugal Kishore, the police paid their respects with the sounding of the last bugle and a salute.

Rana died at a hospital in Faridabad after a brief illness. He was 59 years old.

According to a senior BJP leader, Rana was undergoing treatment at the hospital. He is survived by his wife, Gunjan Rana, their daughters Devyani and Ketki, and son Adhiraj Singh.

Shekhawat, who flew from New Delhi to attend Rana’s cremation, said, “Devender Rana was a senior leader with a deep understanding of the party’s ideology. His loss is significant for the BJP.”

Political leaders from various parties gathered to bid farewell to Rana, who passed away late on Diwali night. He was a prominent entrepreneur and an influential politician.

Abdullah travelled to Jammu on Friday to bid farewell to Rana, his former aide, and conveyed his condolences to the bereaved family.