
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 1: On the death anniversary of Ram Nath Manhas, a prominent leader of Praja Parishad, Jana Sangh, BJP and former MLA, rich tribute were paid to him in a programme held at village Indri (Sujwal) in Jourian tehsil of Akhnoor Assembly constituency today.
The programme was organized by Sarpanch Bhupinder Singh, grandson of Ram Nath Manhas.
Sat Sharma (CA), Jammu and Kashmir BJP president, Dr. Nirmal Singh, former Deputy Chief Minister, Mahant Rameshwar Dass, led hundreds of people to pay tribute to Manhas.
Sat Sharma, while speaking on the occasion, said that Ram Nath Manhas was one of the tallest and most respected leader of his times, who had the distinction of having worked in different agitations of Praja Parishad, Jana Sangh and BJP. As elected MLA, he was always at the beck and call of the people and was indeed the torch bearer of nationalist ideology. People still remember his role in historic Ek Vidhan, Ek Nishan, Ek Pradhan agitation. He devoted his entire life for the cause of the nation in Jammu and Kashmir and had developed the faith of the people as son of the soil, who worked to strengthen nationalist forces.
“Ram Nath Manhas struggled hard to connect Indri village to main mainland and a bridge is being constructed to connect it with Pargwal”, Sat said, adding that his dream is going to come true and the people will get proper road connectivity soon.
Dr. Nirmal Singh, while paying tribute, described Ram Nath Manhas as a leader of masses, who left marks in the political and social fields of Jammu and Kashmir and would continue to inspire the young generations to devote life for the nation and the party. He informed that it was during the coalition Government in J&K that he, being Deputy Chief Minister, got approval for Rs 206 crore for construction of Indri-Pargwal bridge. The bridge will connect Pargwal island with mainland, which will provide big relief to the people of the area. He said Ram Nath Manhas on his own initiative connected Pargal with rest of Jammu by constructing a link road with support of locals and he was among those BJP MLAs who voluntarily declined to receive Government plots in posh areas saying that the main objective of their life was to serve the people without getting comforts as MLAs and hence left a mark of his honesty and dedication to the motherland.
Mahant Rameshwar Dass said that persons like Ram Nath Manhas are very rare, who create space in the hearts of the people through their work and willingness to remain connected with masses.
A resolution to dedicate and name the upcoming Indri-Pargwal Bridge as Ram Nath Bridge was also passed.
Mohan Lal Bhagat, MLA, Rajeev Sharma, former MLA, Suraj Singh , DDC vice chairman, Daljit Singh Chib, senior leader, Suresh Sharma, DDC member, Chaman Lal Kanathia, Jagdish Bhagat,Sukhdev Singh, Ashok Singh, Ram Sarup Sharma and others also paid tribute.