Indian PM Modi, President Murmu lead tributes to ex-PM Vajpayee

Indian President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday paid floral tributes to Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his fifth death anniversary at the 'Sadaiv Atal' memorial in Delhi.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, too, laid floral tributes at the memorial of the saffron stalwart, who was conferred with the country's highest civilian honour, Bharat Ratna.

Significantly, the BJP, for the first time, invited fellow partners in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to the event to pay tributes to the former Prime Minister at the Sadaiv Atal Memorial.

Among the partner leaders of the NDA at the event were former Bihar chief minister Jeetan Ram Manjhi, Tamil Manila Congress leader GK Vasan, AIADMK's Thambi Durai, Apna Dal leader Anupriya Patel, NCP leaders Praful Patel and Agatha Sangama, among others.

Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, from the Nitish Kumar-led JDU, also paid floral tributes to the former PM on his death anniversary.

Also, significantly, Vajpayee's foster daughter Namita Kaul Bhattacharya was also laid floral tributes at the memorial of the departed leader.

To further shore up and strengthen the NDA, with an eye on next year's Lok Sabha elections, the BJP has been holding political events, be it the meeting of the partners in the ruling alliance at the Centre earlier this year or the one to mark the 25th of the NDA government. 

The meetings are aimed at fostering unity among the NDA partners and cultivating a positive working relationship.

On August 11, the BJP organised a workshop for NDA spokespersons.

"The objective of this workshop was to work collectively to ensure a strong performance in next year's Lok Sabha elections," a party source told ANI.

Earlier, PM Modi held a series of 11 meetings with NDA MPs from different states — on July 31 August 2,3,8, and 9 — during which he offered important suggestions and advice to the partner leaders ahead of next year's general elections.

His visionary leadership, successful management and strategic acumen not only shaped the BJP's image during his prime ministerial tenure but also helped build the party's stocks from scratch.

Born in Gwalior in 1924, Vajpayee was the face of the BJP for decades and was the first non-Congress prime minister to have served a full term in office.

After coming to power in 2014 PM Modi declared that December 25 - Vajpayee's birthday - would be celebrated as Good Governance Day every year in honour of the former PM.

(ANI)