Freedom fighters pay homage to SN

mysore: it was a coincidence that the veteran freedom fighters who gathered in large numbers in mysore city on wednesday to pay their respects to the departed soul __ former chief minister of karnataka s. nijalingappa __who passed away on tuesday night, also observed the historical 58th anniversary of quit india movement the same day. freedom fighter and noted advocate govind singh hoisted the national flag at half mast in front of the freedom fighters memorial hall in subbarayanakere grounds and then observed silence for a while as a gesture of respect to the departed soul of one of the greatest statesmen of karnataka.the chief guest on the occasion former mlc rammana said, the death of the great leader a day before the historical day speaks a lot about his commitment to the cause. gandhian economist prof pranesh rao also spoke on the occasion. after the programme, some of the leaders closely associated with the statesman left for his funeral ceremony which was to be held at his home town in chitradurga. many leaders spoke of his unparalleled commitment, efforts and dedication. meanwhile, district in-charge minister h. viswanath in a press statement has condoled the death of senior statesman nijalingappa. he said the state and the country has lost "a great man". he lauded the service of the former chief minister during freedom struggle. similarly mayor narayan described the departed leader as a man of integrity who practised lofty political principles. sri shivarathri deshikendra swami of suttur math was the first to condole the death. he lauded the efforts of the "selfless statesman" for his service to various fields and reflected on the simplicity of thought and life style of nijalingappa. the swami noted that the death had created a void and expressed his condolences to the great leader's family. minister of state for finance m. shivanna also condoled his death, as did many prominent personalities in the city.