New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the Bharat Ratna upon former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Friday.
In a break from tradition, the President visited Vajpayee’s residence to confer the award to him.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, cabinet ministers and senior BJP leaders flocked to Vajpayee’s residence in Lutyens’ Delhi on the occasion.
The Union government had earlier announced the decision to confer the Bharat Ratna on Vajpayee and Madan Mohan Malaviya.
Vajpayee, who was prime minister from 1998 to 2004 has faded from public life due to age-related illness, is lauded as a statesman and has been often described as the moderate face of the BJP.
He has been credited with taking bold initiatives, notable among them being the historic bus journey to Lahore in 1999 when he signed the landmark Lahore Declaration with Nawaz Sharif, the then prime minister as well, with both sides pledging to push for peace and security.
Meanwhile, Home Minister Rajnath Singh described the former prime minister as an international icon who is respected and loved by one and all.
“Our former Prime Minister Vajpayee is not only just an Indian statesman but an international icon who is respected and loved by everyone,” Singh said.
“His personality, his oratory skill, his honesty and humility signify his greatness. His is a great human being,” he added.
Also joining the wish list was West Bengal Chief minister Mamata Banerjee. She expressed happiness over the former prime minister being conferred Bharat Ratna and described him as a “truly great statesman” who richly deserves this honour.
“He is a truly great statesman who richly deserves this honour. I wish him well,” the Trinamool Congress supremo, who served as a minister in the Vajpayee government, tweeted.
Congress last year welcomed the conferment of Bharat Ratna on Atal Bihari Vajpayee saying it hoped that the NDA government will follow the path of ‘Raj Dharma’ and secularism shown by them.
“We welcome the announcement of giving Bharat Ratna to Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Madan Mohan Malviya. To a certain extent, both represent the Indian thought which is secular and tolerant. We hope that this present government will walk in the path shown by these leaders,” Congress General Secretary and in charge of Media Communication Ajay Maken said.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the eleventh Prime Minister of India, first for 13 days in 1996 and then from 1998 to 2004. A leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he is the first Prime Minister from outside the Indian National Congress party to serve a full five-year term.
Vajpayee was elected to the Lok Sabha (the lower house of India’s Parliament) nine times, and twice to the Rajya Sabha (upper house).
He also served as the Member of Parliament for Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, until 2009, when he retired from active politics due to health concerns. Vajpayee was one amongst the founder members of erstwhile Bharatiya Jana Sangh, which he had also headed.
He was also the Minister of External Affairs in the cabinet of Morarji Desai. When Janata government collapsed, Vajpayee restarted the Jana Sangh as the Bharatiya Janata Party in 1980.
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