PRESIDENT Droupadi Murmu conferred Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian honour, on BJP stalwart and former Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani at his residence here on Sunday. The ceremony was attended by Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah and the family members of Advani, the Rashtrapati Bhawan said in a post on X. Prime Minister Modi sat next to Advani as the President honoured the veteran leader with Bharat Ratna. Modi said on X that it was very special to witness the conferring of the Bharat Ratna on Advani and this honour is a recognition of his enduring contributions to the nation’s progress. “His dedication to public service and his pivotal role in shaping modern India have left an indelible mark on our history.

 

I am proud to have got the opportunity to work with him very closely over the last several decades,” the Prime Minister said. The Rashtrapati Bhawan described Advani as a doyen of Indian politics and said that he has served the nation with unwavering dedication and distinction for over seven decades. As a parliamentarian, his emphasis on dialogue enriched parliamentary traditions, it said. Whether as Home Minister or as Deputy Prime Minister, Advani always prioritised national interest above all, earning him respect and admiration from across party lines, it said in a series of posts on X.

 

“His long and tireless struggle for India’s cultural regeneration culminated in the reconstruction of Shri Ram Temple in Ayodhya in 2024,” it said. Among the handful of post-Independence political leaders who succeeded in reshaping the national agenda and placing it on the path of development, Advani’s accomplishments provide the best articulation of the genius of India and its inclusive traditions, the Rashtrapati Bhawan said and shared pictures of the ceremony on X. Born in Karachi (now in Pakistan) in 1927, Advani migrated to India in 1947 during Partition. The 96-year-old BJP stalwart served as Deputy Prime Minister from June 2002 to May 2004 and as Union Home Minister from October 1999 to May 2004.