Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee Dies at 93: These Quotes by Former Indian Prime Minister Makes Him Immortal

Former Prime Minister Atal Bihar Vajpayee died at the age of 93 on Thursday, August 16, after undergoing treatment for over two months at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Vajpayee was ailing since 2009. He was suffering from lower respiratory tract infection and kidney- related issues and was admitted to AIIMS on June 11. An orator par excellence, he was known for his speeches inside and outside the parliament.

Vajpayee was sworn-in as the 10th Prime Minister of India in 1996, when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single largest party in 1996 general elections. He failed to prove majority in the Parliament and had to resign after 13 days. In 1998 again Vajpayee became the prime minister. This time the BJP lead government lasted for 13 months. In the general election held in 1999, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance secured 303 seats paving the way for Vajpayee to become prime minister for the third time.

Remembering the leader through his quotes:

1)    If Pakistan had not accepted the demand to stop cross-border infiltration and the United States had not conveyed to us Pakistan’s guarantee to do so, then nothing could have stopped a war.

2)    India is a proud and sovereign country. We do not take any decisions under pressure from the U.S and any other power.

3)    We have ended hunger, but now we have to end famine.

4)    You can change friends but not neighbours

5)    Our nuclear weapons are meant purely as a deterrent against a nuclear adventure by an adversary.

6)    Terrorism has become a festering wound. It is an enemy of humanity.

7)    Our Aim is as high as the endless sky, but we should have a resolve in our minds to walk ahead, hand-in-hand, victory will be ours.

8)    If India is not secular, then India is not India at all.

9)    Quiet diplomacy is far more effective than public posturing.

10)    I have a vision of India: an India free of hunger and fear, an India free of illiteracy and want.

11)    Victory and defeat are a part of life, which are to be viewed with equanimity.

During Vajpayee’s second term as a prime minister, India conducted five underground nuclear tests in Pokhran desert in Rajasthan in May 1998. Kargil War was also fought during the reign. The former prime minister is not only an exemplary politician but also a great visionary and poet.

The former prime minister also participated in Indian freedom struggle. He was first arrested in 1942 during ‘Quit India Movement’. Vajpayee also worked with Deendayal Upadhyaya to form the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, a Hindu right-wing political party associated with the Rashtriya Sawamsewak Sangh (RSS). From 1975 to 1977, Vajpayee was arrested along with several other opposition leaders during the Internal Emergency imposed by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

The former prime minister was responsible for the formation of Janata Party against the Congress in 1977. He also served as the Minister of External Affairs in Prime Minister Morarji Desai's cabinet. Vajpayee became the first person to deliver a speech to the United Nations General Assembly in Hindi. The three-time former PM along with L.K Advani and Bhairon Singh Shekhawat formed the BJP in 1980.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 16, 2018 05:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).