New Delhi, Oct 2 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi Sunday paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi on his 142nd birth anniversary. It was the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson's first public appearance after surgery abroad.

The leaders, including Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veteran L.K. Advani, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath, paid floral tributes at the memorial on the banks of the Yamuna river.

A minute's silence was observed at the black stone memorial by all the leaders.

Crowds, including a number of kids from slums and shelter homes, thronged the Gandhi memorial and some of them sang devotional songs and showered flowers at the memorial.

"I've come here for the first time and I was very excited to perform on Gandhiji's birthday before the leaders of our nations. I will cherish this opportunity forever," said Anoop, a 13-year-old from Salaam Balak Trust, a shelter in north Delhi.

MPs, both from the ruling and opposition parties, paid tribute at a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi in the parliament complex.

The birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi is celebrated as Gandhi Jayanti across the country. It is also marked as the International Day of Non-Violence.

Gandhi, born this day in 1869 at Porbandar in Gujarat, played a key role in India's independence struggle. He was assassinated Jan 30, 1948.