Tens of hundreds of people on Wednesday lined up on a 5-km route from Belakota to Ambalga village of Kamalapur taluk in Kalaburagi district to bid farewell to senior leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Maruti Manpade. The 65-year-old leader passed away on Tuesday.
The hexagenarian, who was said to have recovered from COVID-19, died of severe pneumonia at a private hospital in Solapur, Maharashtra. He is survived by his wife and two sons.
A four-member COVID-19 body disposal team from the Solapur hospital brought the body to his native Ambalga village at noon on Wednesday. All the protocols were followed during the disposal of the body.
Though a large number of people gathered for the funeral, they were not allowed to see the face of the leader for the last time. Party members, activists from various organisations, workers and farmers stood carrying the party flag on either side of the 5-km stretch from Belkota to Ambalga village, where the last rites were performed on government land.
Manpade was the State vice-president of the Karnataka Pranth Raita Sangha. He dedicated his life to fighting for the rights of farmers and workers in the organised and unorganised sectors in the Kalyana Karnataka region. He always criticised the government’s import policies that directly affected local farmers.
CPI(M) State secretary U. Basavaraj, district secretary Sharanabasappa Mamshetty, CITU State president Varalakshmi, CPI leaders Bheemashankar Madiyal, senior Dalit leader Gurushant Pattedar and others were present during the last rites.