Hassan, 20 July (H.S.): The last rites of Chennamma Deve Gowda, wife of former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, will be performed with full state honours on Monday at the foothills of Bettada Ranganathaswamy Temple near Kyatanahalli village in Haradanahalli, Holenarasipur taluk of Karnataka’s Hassan district.

Chennamma Deve Gowda passed away on Saturday. Her mortal remains have been kept at the residence of HD Revanna in Holenarasipur for people to pay their last respects. Family members, relatives, political leaders and a large number of people have been arriving to offer tributes.

The district administration and the family have completed all necessary preparations for the funeral ceremony. A large tent has been erected at the foothills of Bettada Ranganathaswamy Temple, with seating arrangements made for around 30,000 people. Essential facilities have also been arranged for the convenience of the public and distinguished guests attending the ceremony.

The religious rituals will begin after 2 pm. The final rites will be conducted under the guidance of Kannan Swamy, chief priest of the Kanakagiri Sri Lakshminarayana Swamy Temple in JP Nagar, Bengaluru. After 3 pm, Chennamma Deve Gowda will be accorded a state funeral, with the entire cremation process expected to be completed by around 4:30 pm.

Chennamma Deve Gowda had spent a significant part of her life in the Holenarasipur region and shared a close bond with people from nearby villages, including Halekote, Muttige Hirihalli and Haradanahalli. Considering her emotional connection with the area, the family decided to select the foothills of Bettada Ranganathaswamy Temple as the funeral site after discussions.

Her son-in-law and Rajya Sabha MP Dr C.N. Manjunath said that the family is also considering building a memorial for Chennamma Deve Gowda at the same location in the future.

Several prominent leaders are expected to attend the funeral, including Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi, V. Somanna, Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Manohar Lal Khattar. Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly R. Ashoka, Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, BJP Karnataka President B.Y. Vijayendra and MP B.Y. Raghavendra are also among those expected to be present.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar