Bihar Governor Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain and Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita will represent India at the state funeral and burial ceremonies of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, according to Iranian sources.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had received a formal invitation from Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to attend the ceremonies. However, he will not be able to travel to Iran as he is scheduled to visit Indonesia, New Zealand, and Australia during the same period.
President Pezeshkian extended the invitation last week following the death of Khamenei, who was killed in a US-Israeli airstrike on February 28.
The funeral was initially planned for March but was postponed because of the regional conflict. The ceremonies will now take place over several days in July across different cities in Iran.
The state funeral will begin on July 4, when Khamenei’s body will lie in state at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla complex. Public processions are also planned in Tehran and Qom, while special prayers will be held in the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala.
The final burial ceremony is scheduled for July 9 at the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, Khamenei’s hometown.
In the Prime Minister’s absence, the Indian delegation will be led by Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain and Pabitra Margherita. They will attend the ceremonies on behalf of the Government of India, as the Prime Minister’s overseas engagements had been finalised before the invitation from Tehran was received.
