PM Modi lays wreath on Mufti Sayeed’s mortal remains

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed by laying a wreath on his mortal remains at Palam Airport here on Thursday.

Sayeed breathed his last at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the national capital early this morning.

Jammu and Kashmir government today announced a seven-day mourning period in state as a mark of respect to Mufti Mohammed Sayeed.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of State in Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Jitendra Singh will attend Sayeed’s funeral in Srinagar.

Meanwhile, the PDP has hinted that party president Mehbooba Mufti would take over as the next Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.

Sayeed, who was born in 1936 in Bijbehara, Jammu and Kashmir, had previously served as Chief Minister from 2002 to 2005. He was also the Home Minister of India from December 1989 to November 1990.

He had founded the Jammu and Kashmir People’s Democratic Party in 1999. (ANI)