Mohinder Kaur (Source: Facebook)
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh’s mother, Mohinder Kaur, died at her Patiala residence Monday. Kaur was 96. She is survived by two sons and two daughters. She was the last designated queen of Patiala Royal State. A former MP, Kaur had been unwell for some time. She breathed her last at the family’s Moti Mahal residence in Patiala at 7.24 pm due to multiple organ system failure due to age-related health problems, said a government statement.
She will be cremated at Shahi Samadhan, the royal crematorium, Tuesday. Amarinder rushed to Patiala and the Cabinet meeting and other programmes scheduled for Tuesday stand cancelled, an official spokesperson said.
Kaur, wife of the late Maharaja of Patiala, Yadavindra Singh, was born in Ludhiana (undivided Punjab), to Harchand Singh Jaijee, a nobleman of Patiala State and a member of the Patiala Riyasat Praja Mandal (Patiala State Peoples’ Forum, an affiliate of the Indian National Congress). She got married in 1938, at the age of 16.
A former member of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Kaur had been actively involved in several political, social and other philanthropic activities. Several dignitaries from across the country mourned the death of the royal matriarch.
All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Sonia Gandhi, its vice president Rahul Gandhi and other senior leaders of the Congress called up the Chief Minister to express their condolences.
These include Governor of Punjab VP Singh Bhadnore, Speaker Punjab Assembly Rana KP Singh, Deputy Speakr Ajaib Singh Bhatti, state’s Ministers Brahma Mohindra, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Manpreet Singh Badal, Rana Gurjit Singh, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Sadhu Singh Dharmsot, Charanjeet Singh Channi, Razia Sultana and Aruna Chaudhary, besides several party MLAs and MPs.
Senior Advisor to CM Lieutenant General TS Shergill (retd), Media Advisor to CM Raveen Thukral and Advisor to CM BIS Chahal also expressed their grief and shared their heartfelt condolences with the bereaved family and relatives.
The Punjab State IAS Officers’ Association and Punjab Civil Services Officers’ Association also condoled the death of CM’s mother.
AAP condoles Kaur’s demise
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has condoled the demise of Mohinder Kaur, mother of Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.
In a statement issued in Chandigarh, Sukhpal Khaira, Leader of Opposition, said the contributions of Mohinder Kaur to public life were well-known to the people of state and the country. “She has represented the people and had been an active social-political activist throughout her life. It is because of her guidance that her son Captain Amarinder Singh is holding the office of Chief Minister of Punjab, he said.
