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ATAL BIHARI VAJPAYEE
Born: 1924
Shri. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the ex Prime
Minister of India, is a multi faceted political personality. He was born on
25th December 1924, at Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh to parents Krishna Bihari
Vajpayee, a school teacher and Krishna Devi. He was educated at Victoria
alias Laxmibai College, Gwalior and D.A.V. College, Kanpur and holds a
Postgraduate degree in Political Science.
Shri
Vajpayee's first brush with nationalist politics was in his student days,
when he joined the Quit India Movement of 1942 which hastened the end of
British colonial rule. A student of political science and law, it was in
college that he developed a keen interest in foreign affairs, an interest he
has nourished over the years and put to skilful use while representing India
at various multilateral and bilateral foray. For a while he studied law, but
midstream he chose to become a journalist. This choice was largely
influenced by the fact that as a student he had been an activist in India's
struggle for freedom. Shri Vajpayee had embarked upon a journalist's career,
which was cut short in 1951 when he joined Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
As a founder-member of the Jana Sangh, 1951-1977 (now known as Bharatiya
Janatha Party) he served as the party's president and took it to new
heights. He served as the BJP's president for the first five years of its
existence, laying the foundation for the party's awesome growth in the last
one decade. As a parliamentarian, he has been elected to the Lok Sabha nine
times and to the Rajya Sabha twice. He is the only parliamentarian elected
from four different States at different times namely UP, Gujarat, MP and
Delhi. He served as External Affairs Minister in the Morarji Desai
Government from 1977 to 1979. He was elected to various positions including
Prime Minister and Leader of Opposition (1993), Lok Sabha; Chairperson of a
number of parliamentary committees. He served as Prime Minister for a short
stint in 1996. Later on March 19, 1998, he took charge as Prime Minister of
India and again on October 13, 1999 for the second consecutive term as the
head of a new coalition government, the National Democratic Alliance. He is
the only Prime Minister since Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to have become Prime
Minister of India through three successive mandates.
Apart from politics, Shri Vajpayee has participated in various social and
cultural activities. The Krishna Bihari Vajpayee Trust set up by him in the
name of his late father promotes a number of constructive activities for the
uplift of the deprived and poor as well as children. He has been a Member of
the National Integration Council since 1961. Some of his other associations
include being President of All India Station Masters and Assistant Station
Masters Association (1965-70); Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Smarak Samiti
(1968-84); Deen Dayal Dham, Farah, Mathura, U.P; and Janmabhomi Smarak
Samiti, 1969 onwards.
Vajpayee has many literary and artistic accomplishments to his credit. Well
known and respected for his love for poetry and as an eloquent speaker, Shri
Vajpayee is known to be a voracious reader. He edited Rashtradharma (a Hindi
monthly), Panchjanya (a Hindi weekly) and the dailies Swadesh and Veer Arjun.
His published works include 'Meri Ikkyavan Kavitayen' and 'Amar Aag Hai'
(collection of poems), 'Sankalp Kaal', 'Shakti-se-Shanti', 'Meri Sansadiya
Yatra' (in four volumes), 'Four Decades in Parliament' (speeches (1957-95)
in three volumes), 'Lok Sabha mein Atalji' (a collection of speeches); 'Mrityu
Ya Hatya', 'Amar Balidan', 'Kaidi Kaviraj Ki Kundalian' (a collection of
poems written in jail during Emergency), 'New Dimensions of India's Foreign
Policy' (a collection of speeches delivered as External Affairs Minister
during 1977-79); 'Jan Sangh Aur Mussalman' etc .'Baapji' as affectionately
called by his close friends and relatives is a family man. He finds time to
spend with his adopted daughters Namita and Neharika in between his hectic
schedules. He is fond of Indian music and dance. He loves nature and one of
his favorite retreats is Manali in Himachal Pradesh.
India's second highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan, was conferred
upon him in 1992 in recognition of his selfless dedication to his first and
only love, India, and his more than half-a-century of service to society and
the nation. In 1994, he was named India's 'Best Parliamentarian'. Over the
decades, he has emerged as a national leader who has mass appeal and
commands respect for his liberal worldview and commitment to democratic
ideals.
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