Bharat Ratna sought for former PM Vajpayee

Tribune News Service

Haridwar, December 15

With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) set to celebrate December 25, birthday of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, on a big scale as ‘good governance day,’ the demand of according the country’s highest civilian award Bharat Ratna to Vajpayee is gaining ground.

Today in Haridwar, BJP national executive committee secretary and in charge for affairs of BJP in Uttarakhand Shyam Jaju has sought the coveted highest civilian award to the former Prime Minister of India on December 25.

“If the Indian government decides to accord Bharat Ratna, then this will be the best gift that the country can give to the veteran politician on his 90th birthday. Vajpayee is a revered political figure worldwide and has also served as foreign minister in the Janata Party Union government, thrice BJP national president and 11 times parliamentarian,” said Jaju.

On the concern towards sacred river Ganga cleaning, Shyam Jaju said that the Central Government is quite serious over the aspect and due to this only it formed a separate Ganga Rejuvenation Union Ministry, joining it with Water Resources Department.

Shyam Jaju cited the recent meeting headed by Union Minister for Shipping Nitin Gadkari in which officials of five major departments related with Ganga river cleaning were present.

“Already Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ganga Rejuvenation Union Minister Uma Bharati have underlined the importance of the plan to clean the holy river. We need cooperation from the common public, too, be it for clean holy Ganga, Swach Bharat Abhiyan or drug-free drive, ‘’said Jaju, while leaving for New Tehri town in Garhwal, to take part in a two-day state executive BJP meeting.

Shyam Jaju said that parliamentarians should be cautious while making any public comment, though he said that already Union Minister for Food Processing State Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti and Unnao MP Sakshi Maharaj apologised in Parliament over their controversial remarks.

BJP city legislator Madan Kaushik, Mayor Manoj Garg, divisional party chief Vikas Tiwari and Naresh Sharma welcomed the party leader at Gobindpuri.