PM Modi honours Syama Prasad Mookerjee on his birth anniv

Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to BJP ideologue Syama Prasad Mookerjee on his 123rd birth anniversary on Saturday.

 

Lauding Mookerjee's fierce nationalism, Modi remarked that his sacrifice and dedication to the motherland continue to inspire.

 

Mookerjee, a key founder of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh—the precursor to the Bharatiya Janata Party—was a member of Jawaharlal Nehru's Cabinet.

 

He resigned in protest over disagreements with Nehru, subsequently establishing the Jana Sangh with RSS support.

 

Mookerjee passed away in 1953 following his arrest in Jammu and Kashmir during his agitation against the state's restrictions on Indian citizens. He was a vocal critic of the special status accorded to Jammu and Kashmir.

 

Modi highlighted his government's 2019 decision to revoke Article 370, which granted special rights to the state, as the fulfillment of Mookerjee's long-standing vision.