Hundreds of mourners bid adieu to Brahma Kumaris’ top functionary

Thousands of people from different states and abroad thronged Abu Road on Sunday to bid adieu to Nirwair Bhai, who had a 55-year-long association with Brahma Kumaris and served as the general secretary of the organisation, which has about 8,000 centres across 140 countries. Nirwair died on Friday during treatment at Ahmedabad.

The mortal remains of BK Nirwair were consigned to flames after a guard of honour given by the security guards of the organisation. The chief administrator of the Brahma Kumaris, 101-year-old Dadi Ratanmohini, lit the funeral pyre as per the rituals.

President Droupadi Murmu, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Minister and BJP National President JP Nadda, Chief Ministers — Nayab Singh Saini of Haryana, Bhupendra Patel of Gujarat, Bhajan Lal Sharma of Rajasthan — former CMs Vasundhara and Ashok Gehlot expressed their condolences. Their letters were read out at the final prayer meeting.

The mortal remains were kept on the porch of the conference hall at Shantivan. Guards led by Colonel (retired) BK Sati bid farewell by giving a salute in his honour. After this, the last procession started, which reached his residence, Mahadani Cottage, where his family members, including his brother and nephew, who had come from Mukerian in Hoshiarpur and other places, paid homage. They requested the organisation preserve Mahadani Cottage as a memory.

In honour of the departed spiritual leader, all the taxi operators and shopkeepers kept their businesses closed in the Abu Road area till afternoon.