Sushma pays tributes to Lal Bahadur Shastri at his memorial in Tashkent

AMN / Tashkent

India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj paid floral tributes to Lal Bahadur Shastri at his memorial in Uzbek capital, Tashkent today. At the memorial, Mrs Swaraj also met Yakov Shapiro who sculpted the Bronze bust of India’s second Prime Minister.

Shastri had died in Tashkent in January 1966 after signing the Tashkent Declaration that formally ended a war between India and Pakistan.

EAM @SushmaSwaraj paying floral tribute to freedom fighter and 2nd Prime Minister of India Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri at his memorial in Tashkent. pic.twitter.com/JslWPwScIr

— Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) August 5, 2018

Earlier, after reaching Tashkent on her first visit to Uzbekistan, Mrs Swaraj called on the country’s Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov and held discussions on bilateral relations. She also met with Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Nurdinjon Ismoilov. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in a tweet that the two leaders discussed the role of Parliament in fostering closer people-to-people relationship.

Mrs Swaraj also addressed the Indian community and inaugurated a mango festival. The External Affairs Minister is in Uzbekistan on the final leg of her three-nation tour. She had earlier visited Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.