Kathmandu, March 3

Former deputy prime minister and four-time finance minister and Nepal Communist Party (NCP) leader Bharat Mohan Adhikari, who had passed away on Saturday night, was created with state honours at Pashupati Aryaghat today.

Adhikari’s daughters, Luna, Lima and Luza lit his funeral pyre. Adhikari, 82, passed away yesterday at 9:35 pm at Hospital for Advanced Medicine and Surgery. Adhikari had been suffering from heart and respiratory problems and was admitted to the hospital around 30 days ago. His body was kept at NCP’s party office in Dhumbarahi from 8:00am to 11:00am for people to pay him final tributes before being taken to Pashupati.

NCP Chairpersons Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and former PMs Jhalanath Khanal and Madhav Kumar Nepal paid their final tributes to Adhikari at the party office. Similarly, senior Nepali Congress leader Ramchandra Paudel, NC vice-president Bijay Kumar Gacchadhar, and other party leaders paid their final respects to Adhikari at the party office.

At Pashupati Aryaghat, high level officials of Nepali Army, Nepal Police, Armed Police force, constitutional bodies, ministries, former and incumbent ministers, family, friends, and well-wishers paid their last respects to Adhikari.

Meanwhile, the NCP secretariat passed a condolence motion on the demise of Adhikari and decided to fly the party’s flag at half mast for three days starting today.

Adhikari was born to Ram Chandra Adhikari and Purna Kumari Devi as the couple’s youngest son on Baishak 22, 1993 BS at Bhawarapur village of Mahottari district.

Adhikari is known for introducing a popular development project ‘Afno Gaun Afai Banau’ (Lets build our village ourselves) during his tenure as the finance minister in the cabinet of PM Manmohan Adhikari in 2051 BS. Adhikari had also introduced  senior citizen allowance for the first time in the country the same year.

Political leaders and general people taken to social media to condole his death.  Fomer PM Baburam Bhattarai said on twitter, “I am hurt to hear the demise of the relentless soldier of democratic movements. Final salute to the cheerful and kind person, I will always remember.”

Similarly, NCP leader Yogesh Bhattarai said, “Adhkari was a mature and experienced leader whose vision set a path toward social and economic transformation of the country.”Similarly, Rastriya Janamorcha Nepal Chairman Chitra Bahadur KC issuing a press release has expressed condolences to the deceased’s family. Adhikari had announced his retirement from active politics in 2014.