‘India lost a true friend’: Lok Sabha pays tributes to Shinzo Abe, others
Paying tribute to former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said upon his untimely demise Japan lost a visionary politician while India lost a true friend
On the first day of the monsoon session, Lok Sabha paid tributes to assassinated former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe along with other eminent leaders from across the world and former parliamentarians who recently passed away.
Addressing the Lower House, Speaker Om Birla said under the leadership of prime minister Shinzo Abe, the relationship between Japan and India boosted by strengthening of economic ties, skill development, digital partnership, defence and nuclear partnership etc. “Upon his untimely demise, Japan lost a visionary politician, while India lost a true friend,” he said. Abe was shot from behind by a former maritime self-defence force member while delivering a speech on July 8, in Japan’s Nara city.
Birla on behalf of the Lok Sabha, also honored the former president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and the third president of Kenya Mwai Kibaki.
Obituary references were also given to eight former parliamentarians- Janata Dal (United)’s Nawal Kishore Rai, a member of the 10th, 11th and 13th Lok Sabha who was part of multiple parliamentary committees,a Congress’ Sukh Ram, a member of the 8th, 10th and 11th Lok Sabhas who also served as the IT minister from 1993 to 1996 and Congress’ Hussain Dalwai, who was a member of both the Houses and served at a ministerial position in the Maharashtra government.
Tributes were also paid to Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Rabindar Kumar Rana, a member in the 14th Lok Sabha, Congress’ T Basheer, a member of the 8th and 9th Lok Sabha, Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP Sivaji Patnaik, a member of the 6th, 9th and 10th Lok Sabha, Congress MP Chakra Dhari Singh, a member of the 7th Lok Sabha and Samajwadi Party’s Harivansh Sahai, a member of the 11th Lok Sabha who also served at a ministerial position in the Uttar Pradesh state government.