Vajpayee had travelled to Lahore in a bus from India in 1999 and started a peace initiative with Pakistan in 2004.
The landmark India-US civil nuclear deal of 2008, brokered during Manmohan Singh's tenure as Prime Minister, is seen as a crowning achievement in his foreign policy legacy. The agreement ended India's nuclear isolation, fostered a strategic partnership with the US, and opened doors to advanced technologies and defense cooperation. This historic deal also laid the groundwork for India's engagement with the global nuclear community.
In 2021, the Centre renamed the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna as Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. But many wonder, why despite the public sentiment the country's highest civilian honour continues to elude the man who put Indian hockey on the world map.
In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN, BJP patriarch L K Advani tells CNN-IBN why he thinks former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee should be awarded a Bharat Ratna
However, he will continue to be in hospital till infection is controlled.
The paraglider was immediately rushed to a hospital in Manali, where she was declared dead, officials added.
The RSS chief recalled how Vajpayee "had almost solved the Kashmir issue but later governments did not follow up on Vajpayee's efforts".
He said Shiv Sena protected a political leadership for 25-30 years but they (the BJP) didn't want Sena and also the Akali Dal -- the erstwhile members of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday declared that he will not realign with the Bharatiya Janata Party till he is alive, accusing the former ally of using investigating agencies for targeting political opponents like Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad.
Chhonzin Angmo became the first visually-impaired woman from India to plant the Tricolour on Earth's highest mountain.
The stage is set for a direct contest between NDA nominee C P Radhakrishnan and joint opposition candidate B Sudershan Reddy for the vice-presidential election. The BJP-led alliance has a clear edge in the poll necessitated due to the sudden resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar.
The matter of disqualification of 16 MLAs following the upheaval in the undivided Shiv Sena last year could have been effectively dealt with had the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) moved swiftly after the resignation of Nana Patole as the Speaker of Maharashtra Assembly, said senior Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar on Friday.
'It will be a long time before we will see the likes of Vajpayee again.'
Former union minister Dilip Ray was on Monday awarded three-year jail term by a Delhi court in a coal scam case pertaining to irregularities in the allocation of a Jharkhand coal block in 1999.
The 96-year-old leader, the longest serving president of the BJP, said ever since he joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as its volunteer at the age of 14 years he has sought reward in only one thing "in dedicated and selfless service of my beloved country in whatever task life assigned to me".
Prashant Kishor termed as "excessive" the 2 years' imprisonment awarded to Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case.
A foreign ministry spokesman familiar with the process said Bangladesh will hand over Vajpayee's "Friends of Bangladesh Liberation War Award" to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his upcoming visit to the country from June 6.
The Modi government had touched the maximum strength of 78 in 2021 after expansion, but the outgoing council of ministers had 72 members, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The Nagpur violence may have been prevented had the police considered the dangerous potential of the VHP/Bajrang Dal's demonstration; had they immediately stopped the burning of the chaddar and arrested the demonstrators; and had they fanned out to counter the rumours that spread among Muslims, observes Jyoti Punwani.
Varun Gandhi on Wednesday gave a new twist to the prime ministerial candidate race in the Bharatiya Janata Party, comparing party president Rajnath Singh to Atal Bihari Vajpayee and saying he has the ability to bring together people of different religions and castes.
'We are convinced a section of the bureaucracy believes we should follow the Western model of economic development including the dictates of the WTO,' says RSS Spokesman Ram Madhav.
SMAT: Haryana beat Bengal to enter Super 8s, Punjab also qualify
Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, passed away in Lisbon at the age of 88 on Tuesday, February 4, 2025.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday dismissed speculation about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's successor, asserting that Modi would continue to lead the country for many more years.
In a culture where children take up the profession of their father, her becoming a politician was seen as natural and acceptable.
With the Bharatiya Janata Party falling short of a majority in the Lok Sabha and needing the National Democratic Alliance partners to form the government at the Centre, Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal-United head Nitish Kumar and Telugu Desam Party's N Chandrababu Naidu have emerged as potential kingmakers.
The twin-engine turboprop transport aircraft, carrying 102 people, had gone missing on February 7, 1968 while flying from Chandigarh to Leh.
'The TMC can't go on forever taking advantage of the people's fright of the BJP.'
Uddhav said Modi lacks the self-confidence of 2014 and 2019.
A decision to this effect was taken at a two-hour long meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security chaired by Prime Minister Vajpayee.
Taking a dig at Narendra Modi, Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari on Sunday said then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had reminded the Gujarat chief minister about 'Raj Dharma' in the wake of the 2002 riots in the state.
Vajpayee held consultations with Deputy Prime Minister Advani, BJP president Venkaiah Naidu and Finance Minister Jaswant Singh in this regard on Monday night.
Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has been critical of the Gujarat chief minister in recent days.
Amid the controversy surrounding the observance of 'Good Governance Day', the human resource development ministry has communicated to vice chancellors of all central universities to complete all programmes related to the event before the Christmas break.
According to sources, Sinha was suffering from high blood pressure and was rushed to RK Hospital in IP Extension when he complained of uneasiness.
On January 29, the Central government had extended the ban imposed on the SIMI for five more years.
'Vajpayee would not have approved either of the way the BJP now functions or of the thoughts that it entertains in its mind,' says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
'My heart weeps for Vajpayee, the prince among poets, the king among politicians and the emperor among statesmen,' says Sudhir Bisht.
Rediff.com has compiled a list of some renowned personalities in the fray for Bharat Ratna. You decide whether they deserve the honour or not.
Democratic Freedom Party leader Shabir Ahmed Shah suggested setting up a Kashmir committee headed by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to frame a policy.
