Sonia Gandhi Arrives In Shimla For Ex-CM Virbhadra Singh Statue Unveiling Ceremony

Shimla: Congress leader Sonia Gandhi arrived in Shimla this afternoon for the unveiling of a statue of former six-time Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister late Virbhadra Singh at the historic Ridge Maidan on Monday. She was welcomed by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri here.

CM Sukhu later wrote on his X handle, "I extend a heartfelt welcome and congratulations to Mrs. Sonia Gandhi ji, the leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party and our source of inspiration, on her arrival in Shimla today."

The statue unveiling ceremony will take place at 10 am in Ridge Maidan of Shimla. Invitations for the event have been issued by the Raja Virbhadra Singh Foundation.

Himachal Pradesh Congress in-charge Rajni Patil has arrived in Shimla two days ago and Congress leader Rajiv Shukla has also reached here. Lok Sabha MP Priyanka Gandhi, CM, deputy CM, state Congress president Pratibha Singh, and several leaders along with government officials will be present at the ceremony. Also, Congress workers across all constituencies will gather here tomorrow.

Former Himachal Pradesh CM Virbhadra Singh passed away on July 8, 2021. His supporters consider him the architect of modern Himachal Pradesh. Having held power in the small hill state for six terms, Virbhadra Singh was very popular among people. He also held the positions of Minister of State and Cabinet Minister at the Centre. He was considered synonymous with the Congress party in Himachal Pradesh.

Virbhadra Singh entered politics inspired by former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. During his political career, spanning nearly six decades, he had the opportunity to work with many prominent former PMs, including Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, PV Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh. Virbhadra Singh also had a close relationship with Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He was a great admirer of Vajpayee and had attended the prayer meeting held in Shimla upon his demise.

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