President Droupadi Murmu bestowed the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian honour in the country, upon BJP stalwart and former deputy prime minister LK Advani at his residence on Sunday.

Kin receive awards conferred on PV Narasimha Rao and Chaudhary Charan Singh, agriculture scientist M S Swaminathan and former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur

PV’s tenure as Prime Minister, the first Telugu to rise to the position, was marked by a tectonic shift in economic policies that opened India to global markets, fostering a new era of development.

While the notion behind honouring our statesmen by conferring Bharat Ratna is welcome. The personalities and timing chosen for the honour has created a room for speculation.

Starting his political career with the Indian National Congress in 1929, he became chief minister of Uttar Pradesh in 1967 and even the Union Home Minister. Uttar Pradesh has remained one of the most difficult as well as important states to rule, ever since Indian independence. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to X to introduce the recipients of the highest civilian award. Five people have been named so far by the PM. Out of which only BJP leader LK Advani is still alive.

BJP president JP Nadda also accompanied Union Home Minster Amit Shah in his visit to Advani’s residence. Shah asserted that the work done by Advani is a source of inspiration for all of us.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement Saturday of the country's highest civilian honour for the 96-year-old leader has come in the year of the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Modi spoke to the BJP’s longest serving president, who is credited with crafting the party’s rise through the 90s, when it came to power for the first time as the head of coalition governments under Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and congratulated him.

The announcement was made by the Rashtrapati Bhavan via a Press Communique on 23rd January.