Devender Rana accorded tearful adieu

Jammu, Nov 1: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and MLA Nagrota, Devender Singh Rana was paid final adieu by a sea of mourners, representing varied sections of society, including politicians cutting across party affiliations, on Friday.

The last rites of Rana, who passed away late Thursday night in a private hospital in Faridabad of the National Capital Region (NCR), surrounding Delhi, were performed at Shastri Nagar Cremation Ground in Jammu Friday evening.

The large crowd of mourners, who attended the last rites, included the Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat; Union Minister of State in PMO and elder brother of Rana, Dr Jitendra  Singh; Chief Minister Omar Abdullah; Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary; Protem Speaker Mubarak Gul; J&K BJP President Ravinder Raina; BJP MP Jugal Kishore Sharma; J&K Cabinet Ministers Javed Rana, Satish Sharma besides several other political leaders.

Divisional Commissioner Jammu, Ramesh Kumar and Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Anand Jain too were there along with other senior officers of Police and civil administration.

There was an outpouring of emotions and grief throughout the day, in and outside the residence of the departed leader at Gandhi Nagar and later at the Cremation Ground.

A large number of people, including Rana’s political colleagues hailing from different parties and supporters besides friends and relatives had rushed to his residence immediately after the news of his sad and sudden demise spread late Thursday evening.

His elder brother Jitendra Singh, shell-shocked as he appeared to be, too was among the first ones to reach Rana’s place immediately after the confirmation of the news.

Throughout the day, the mourners kept on visiting Rana’s residence to share their grief.

They also included the departed leader’s admirers, supporters and his electorate from his constituency Nagrota, many crying.

After paying floral tributes to his big portrait, placed in the front portion of his residence, the majority of them have some moving details to share with the media persons, who remained stationed outside Rana’s residence throughout the day.

Their narratives of varied hues were enough to explain the mass appeal of the departed leader, who had touched the lives of so many in all possible manifestations. “He was a leader connected to grassroots, enjoying a direct rapport with not just his electorate but anyone who came his way seeking any kind of help,” was the crux as they shared their “poignant memories” about their beloved leader and an affable individual.

Mortal remains of Rana, who breathed his last in the Faridabad hospital, reached his residence at Gandhinagar, in a special ambulance at around 2.15 pm. Members of his family accompanied the ambulance in a separate car. As they reached there, slogans viz., “Rana Sahib Amar Rahey”, “Jab Tak Suraj Chand Rahega, Rana Tera Naam Rahega...” filled the air. For an hour or so, mortal remains were placed inside the house, where close friends, relatives besides others paid last respects to Rana.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, along with his Advisor Nasir Aslam Wani and Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary, arrived at 3:25 pm or so to pay homage to his friend, who was once his trusted lieutenant, before going estranged and parting ways.

Omar directly went to the room, where Rana’s mortal remains were placed. He stayed there for a few minutes and then left, without speaking to the media. Earlier, CM Omar had paid a moving tribute to Rana, reminiscing their good old “fun days” on ‘X.’

Rana’s elder brother and Union Minister Jitendra Singh accompanied the family in the vehicle carrying the mortal remains of Rana to the cremation ground.

The CM, along with his cabinet ministers and other party colleagues, then bid adieu to Rana at the Cremation Ground, where his mortal remains were consigned to flames.

Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, who too attended the last rites of Rana, while speaking to the media, said, “Devender Singh Rana was a senior leader. He had a deep understanding about the party’s ideology. It’s a big loss for BJP,” he said.

JKPCC Chief Spokesperson Ravinder Sharma, who was among several politicians gathered at Rana’s residence to pay last respects, while reminiscing his qualities of head and heart, said that he (Rana) would always remain available to the people. “Despite having ideological differences, he would maintain friendly ties with everyone,” Sharma said.

Earlier, Protem Speaker Mubarak Gul, who too was there to pay last respects to Rana, described his sudden demise as very “unfortunate.” “He had worked at every level, in different capacities. He also served as an Advisor to the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. We used to work together like brothers.”

BJP President Ravinder Raina turned emotional while speaking to the media, outside Rana’s residence. “He was a dedicated, hard-working leader. The entire J&K BJP is mourning the sad and sudden demise of Devender Singh Ranaji. He worked for every section of society. He was recently elected from the Nagrota assembly segment scoring the highest winning margin. He will always stay in our hearts. This loss is irreplaceable for J&K and for BJP,” Raina said.

Rana, 59, is survived by his wife Gunjan Rana, two daughters Devyani and Ketki and a son Adhiraj Singh.

In the recently concluded assembly elections, the departed leader made waves by winning the Nagrota assembly segment with the highest margin of 30472 votes, defeating National Conference’s Joginder Singh. He had won this seat earlier in 2014 also, resisting the strong Modi wave, as a National Conference candidate.

Once considered to be a trusted lieutenant of Omar Abdullah, Rana joined the BJP in October 2021 and managed to retain the Nagrota seat yet again with a record margin. This had made him among the frontrunners to be named as BJP Legislature Party leader, likely to be elected on November 3, a day ahead of the commencement of the J&K Legislative Assembly session.

Known as an affable, compassionate individual, Rana, as a multifaceted personality, had carved a niche for himself as a witty, intelligent politician, who had friends cutting across political affiliations.

Born in Doda to Rajinder Singh Rana, who retired as a Chief Engineer, Devender Singh Rana’s successful and eventful journey from an Engineering Graduate to a successful entrepreneur owning a multi-crore company (Jamkash Vehicleades Group) and then an equally influential politician was exemplary as well as enviable.

As a proponent of the “Jammu Declaration”, he created flutters in the political landscape of J&K as he emerged as a strong voice of the Jammu region. He wielded influence, both in the Hindu and Muslim communities of his constituency, given his secular persona.

Rana also successfully founded TakeOne TV, another enviable addition to his list as an illustrious entrepreneur.

He (Rana) established himself as a key strategist during his tenure as an MLC, then Advisor to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah (in his previous stint) and as Provincial President expanded the base of the party in Jammu’s Hindu heartland.

He retained his magical charm even when he joined BJP and thus effectively contributed to bolstering its (BJP) growth in the region.