Council seeks Rafi memorial, award for legendary singer

The Ramgarhia Cultural and Welfare Council, which has been organising musical programmes for the past 18 years in memory of Mohammed Rafi, has demanded that the legendary singer should be honoured with the “Punjab De Anmol Ratan” award and a special memorial be built in his native village of Kotla Sultan Singh, near Majitha, Amritsar.

A letter addressed to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was handed to the Health Minister Balbir Singh by council president Paramjit Singh Parwana. Parwana said special programmes would be throughout the country in December in connection with Rafi Sahib’s hundredth birthday. The council would also organise a programme to mark his birth centenary.

He has requested the Punjab Government to announce the award to Rafi Sahib by the first week of December.

Parwana said appeals were made to the Central Governments from time to time to honour Rafi Sahib with “Bharat Ratna”, but to no avail.