In fond tributes to his mother following her death, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday he always felt in her the presence of a trinity combining an ascetic's journey, a selfless doer and a life committed to values.
Modi's mother Hiraben passed away at a hospital in Ahmedabad on Friday. She was 99.
A bulletin from the UN Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Centre, where she was admitted on Wednesday after her health deteriorated, announced the news of her demise.
“Hiraben Modi passed away on 30/12/2022 at 3.30 am during the treatment at U N Mehta Heart Hospital," the medical bulletin said.
“A glorious century rests at God's feet,” Modi said in a tweet.
Prime Minister Modi recalled that when he met her on her 100th birthday, she had told him: “work with wisdom and live with purity”.
Modi reached Ahmedabad from Delhi on Wednesday afternoon and visited the hospital to meet his mother. He remained at the hospital for more than an hour and also spoke to doctors there.
Hiraben, also called Hiraba, lived at Raysan village near Gandhinagar city with Modi's younger brother Pankaj Modi. The prime minister regularly visited Raysan and spent time with his mother during his visits to Gujarat.
PM's mother a role model for all, says Amit Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday expressed deep sadness over the death of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother and said her sacrificial ascetic life will always be remembered.
In tweets in Hindi, Shah said he was very sad to know about the demise of the prime minister's mother.
The home minister said a mother is the first friend and teacher of a person's life and the pain of losing a mother is undoubtedly the biggest pain in the world.
"The struggles faced by Hira Ba to nurture the family are a role model for all. Her sacrificial ascetic life will always be in our memory. The entire nation stands with Prime Minister Modi and his family in this hour of grief. The prayers of crores of people are with you (Modi). Om Shanti," he said.
President Droupadi Murmu
said Modi imbibed the values of Hiraben in his life.
"I pray for the peace of the holy soul. My condolences to the family!" the president tweeted.
"Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's mother Heeraba's hundred years of struggle is a symbol of Indian ideals. Shri Modi imbibed the spirit of '#Matradevobhav' and the values of Hiraba in his life. I pray for the peace of the holy soul. My condolences to the family!," Murmu tweeted in Hindi.
Hiraben's virtuous life inspiration for all: Lok Sabha speaker
Birla said a mother is the one who nourishes a person's life with values. "Hiraben's virtuous life is an inspiration for all of us," he said.
The Lok Sabha speaker also expressed his deepest condolences to the prime minister and his family members.
Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan and Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday expressed grief over the demise of Hiraben Modi, mother of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"I convey my heartfelt condolences to Prime Minister Sri Narendra Modi ji, and the bereaved family members and pray Lord Jagannath and Lord Venkateswara, to bless her soul to rest in peace," Harichandan said in a tweet.
The Chief Minister in a statement said he shares the personal grief of Prime Minister Modi and extended his heartfelt condolences on the bereavement.
"My deepest condolences to PM @narendramodi garu. My thoughts and prayers are with the family in these difficult times," Jagan Mohan Reddy tweeted.
BJP leaders pay tributes to PM Modi's mother Hiraben
Expressing grief, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said mother's demise creates a void in life that is impossible to fill.
"I am deeply pained by the passing away of Hira Ba, mother of Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi. The death of a mother leaves such a void in one's life that is impossible to fill. I express my condolences to the Prime Minister and his entire family in this hour of grief," Singh said in a tweet.
Paying tributes, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said it was the values which Hiraben imparted to her family through a difficult life full of struggles that has given the country a leader like Modi.
Her simple and compassionate image will always be with us, he said.
Congress leaders condole demise of PM Modi's mother
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi on Friday condoled the demise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother.
"The news of the demise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mother Heeraba is very sad.In this difficult time, I express my deepest condolences and affection to him and his family members," Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.
"Deeply saddened to hear about the demise of Smt. Heeraben Modi. My heartfelt condolences to Sri @narendramodi ji on the loss of his beloved mother. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire family in this hour of grief," Kharge said on Twitter Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his Chhattisgarh counterpart Bhupesh Baghel also sent their condolences and prayed for the peace of the departed soul.
The loss of a mother is like "collapse of a main pillar in life, which leads to emptiness in life," Baghel said.
Congress leader P Chidambaram said the passing away of a mother is an irreparable loss.
"Deeply condole the death of mother of Hon'ble Prime Minister, Smt. Heeraben Modi. She exemplified simplicity and sublimity reflecting the virtuosity of motherhood," the Vice President Secretariat tweeted, quoting Dhankhar.
In his condolence message, former vice president M Venkaiah Naidu said there is nothing as priceless and indescribable in God’s creation as the bond between mother and child.
"May her atma attain sadgati. Om shanti," Naidu tweeted.
