How do opposition leaders react to Bharat Ratna and LK Advani?

After Prime Minister Modi announced that he would award the “Bharatiya Janata Dal” to former Deputy Prime Minister Advani, leaders from all over the country congratulated him and said that the senior leader has made valuable contributions to the country’s development. BJP convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also expressed his blessings to Advani and prayed for his longevity.

AAP convener posted on X: “Congratulations and wishes to veteran leader Lal Krishna Advani ji on receiving the Bharat Ratna award. I pray to God that he always has good health and longevity.”

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar said that LK Advani had made valuable contribution to the development of the country. Pawar posted on X: “LK Advani, former deputy prime minister and senior leader of India, is delighted to be awarded the Bharatiya Janata Dal, the highest civilian honour in India. He has made valuable contribution to the development of the country. Heartfelt congratulations to him.”

RJD leader Manoj Jha also expressed happiness over the news. “I am happy to tell you that LK Advani will be awarded the Bharat Ratna. I also spoke to him and congratulated him on this honour. He is one of the most respected politicians of our time and has contributed immensely to the development of India. He started his life at the grassroots level and served the country as our Deputy Prime Minister. He also served with distinction as our Home Minister and Information and Broadcasting Minister. His parliamentary speeches have always been exemplary and full of rich insights,” he said.

This is the seventh time that the Modi government has awarded the Bharatiya Janata Dal since it came to power in 2014. Other recipients include Kapri Thakur, Madan Mohan Malviya, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Pranab Mukherjee, Bhupen Hazarika and Nanaji Deshmukh. Tamil Nadu Democratic Party president and former chief minister Chandrababu Naidu also congratulated LK Advani on receiving India’s highest civilian honour and said that his genuine warmth and gracious personality impressed everyone.

Congratulations to LK Advani Ji on receiving the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour. Advani Ji stood out for his outstanding hard work and dedication to the country. He made outstanding contributions to the country as a scholar and politician. It was an honour to work with him. His genuine warmth and gracious personality impressed everyone,” Naidu posted on X.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav claimed that the BJP awarded the Bharatiya Janata Dal to LK Advani to “win back votes”. “The BJP awarded the Bharatiya Janata Dal to LK Advani to win back votes. The BJP has reached a consensus on seat sharing in the Indian Union. Seats will be distributed based on wins and seats,” he said.

Advani was born on November 8, 1927 in Karachi (now Pakistan). He has been the longest serving president of the BJP since its formation in 1980. During his nearly three decades in parliament, he served first as home minister and later as deputy prime minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet (1999-2004).

Advani was widely seen as a man of great BroadCast Unitedlect, strong principles and a staunch supporter of a strong India. As Atal Bihari Vajpayee attested, Advani “never compromised on his core beliefs in nationalism and always showed flexibility in his political responses when the situation required it”.

The veteran leader celebrated India’s independence from Britain in 1947, but his independence celebrations were unfortunately short-lived as he became one of the millions of refugees forced to leave their homeland amid the horrors and bloodshed tragedy of India’s Partition. However, rather than turning him cynical or bitter, these events fueled his desire to create a more secular India. With this goal in mind, he headed to Rajasthan to continue his tenure as RSS Pracharak.

In the late 1980s and 1990s, LK Advani focused on the singular task of building the BJP into a national political force. The 1989 general election highlighted the results of his efforts. The party rebounded from 2 seats in 1984 to win an impressive 86 seats. The party rose to 121 seats in 1992 and 161 seats in 1996; the 1996 election became a watershed moment for Indian democracy. For the first time since independence, the Congress was ousted from power and the BJP emerged as the largest party in the Lok Sabha.