Today marks the death anniversary of the Former Prime Minister of Shri. Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his Death Anniversary (25 Dec 1924 - 16 Aug 2018)
Early life
He
was born on December 25, 1924, in Gwalior. He did his graduation in
Hindi, English and Sanskrit and post-graduation in Political Science.
Political Journey :
•
Vajpayee began his political career as a freedom fighter, his first
brush with politics being as part of the Quit India movement of 1942.
• He joined the RSS as a volunteer.
•
In 1947, Vajpayee started working as a journalist for newspapers of
Deendayal Upadhyaya — Rashtradharma (a Hindi monthly), Panchjanya (a
Hindi weekly) and the dailies Swadesh and Veer Arjun.
• Later, influenced by Syama Prasad Mookerjee, Vajpayee joined the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in 1951.
•
His journey in electoral politics began in 1957 when he contested the
Lok Sabha elections from three seats and was elected from Uttar
Pradesh’s Balrampur constituency.
• Vajpayee was a member of the
Parliament for over five decades, having been elected to the Lok Sabha
ten times and twice to the Rajya Sabha.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee as Prime Minister of India:
• Vajpayee served three terms as the prime minister.
• His first term in 1996 lasted only 13 days.
• Then from 1998 to 1999 he was the prime minister for 13 months.
•
Finally, from 1999 to 2004, he successfully served for a full term of
five years. He became the first non-Congress Indian prime minister to
serve a full five-year term in office.
• On May 11, 1998, the world
was caught unawares when India did its first official nuclear tests in
Rajasthan's Pokhran. The underground tests not only demonstrated the
country's scientific capacity but also reflected the courage of
Vajpayee's leadership.
Awards and recognition
• Atal Bihari Vajpayee was conferred with the Padma Vibhushan for his contribution to the country in 1992.
• In 1994, he was recognized as the best Parliamentarian.
• In 2015, Vajpayee was conferred the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award.
