'Papa, you are with me, as an inspiration, in memories, always': Rahul Gandhi pays tribute to his father Rajiv Gandhi on death anniversary

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge gestures to party chairperson Sonia Gandhi after paying floral tribute to former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi on his 32nd death anniversary at Veer Bhoomi of Rajghat in New Delhi on Sunday. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also seen. ANI Photo

Congress leaders including the party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Gandhi family on Sunday paid homage to the youngest Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi, on his death anniversary.

Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were among a large number of party leaders who paid their tributes at Veer Bhumi, the memorial of Rajiv Gandhi.

Sharing a video of his father on Twitter, Rahul Gandhi said, "Papa, you are with me, as an inspiration, in memories, always."

Kharge, who was among the first ones to pay homage to Rajiv Gandhi at Veer Bhumi, also shared a video on the former prime minister's life on Twitter.

"Rajiv Gandhi was a great son of India. Through multiple interventions such as lowering of voting age, strengthening Panchayati Raj, Telecom & IT revolution, and sustained peace accords, he transformed India, propelling it in 21st century. Our humble homage on his martyrdom day," he said in a tweet.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said one of the last major accomplishments of Rajiv Gandhi before his assassination on this day, 32 years ago, was the finalisation of the Congress party's manifesto for the 1991 Lok Sabha elections. He spent many hours on it.

"In July 1991, when Dr Manmohan Singh as FM was criticised for ushering in economic reforms, he would quote frequently from this manifesto, which in many ways bore Rajiv Gandhi's personal imprint.

"His contributions for taking India into the IT age were also distinctive contributions. He wooed GE and Texas Instruments to kickstart software exports. As also his battle for giving Constitutional status to panchayats and nagarpalikas is a truly transformational move," Ramesh said on Twitter.

Also read: Rajiv Gandhi Death Anniversary 2023: Timeline of events that led to the assassination of India's youngest PM

Several other leaders also remembered the former prime minister on his death anniversary.

The Indian Youth Congress organised blood donation camps in Delhi and elsewhere across the country to mark the day.

As many as 400 units of blood were donated by the Youth Congress members at the camp in the national capital.

India's prime minister between 1984 and 1989, Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by LTTE terrorists at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu in 1991 during an election campaign.