Charismatic, smiling, strong but democratic by conviction, former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee is no more. He breathed his last at 5.05 pm yesterday at AIIMS, New Delhi. He was admitted in the Medical Institute on June 11 and though suffering from variety of ailments, was fighting with the inevitable like a true fighter as he had penned through his poems, ” Haar Nahin Manoonga , Raar Nahin Thanoonga, Kaal Kay Kapal Par…” However, the inevitable, the ultimate truth of life , this great humanist too had to bow before.
The entire country has plunged into a pall of gloom and people are mourning his death. Those people, young and old, who loved him most , his style of oratory, choosing words befitting the occasion, the pun, the humour , the satire and the harsh criticism wherever need would arise, had endeared him to millions of people across the country. Central Government has announced seven days national mourning over the demise of Bharat Ratna. Many states have announced public holidays.
Vajpayee had the political dexterity to lead the nation through several crises and held together a tenuous Coalition Government with his inclusive politics. Earlier yesterday, Prime Minister Modi and host of other BJP and opposition leaders drove to the AIIMS to enquire about his condition where it became clear that the end was near.
He had become the Prime Minister of the country first in 1996 which collapsed due to failing to win the confidence vote in the Parliament. Second time, he became the Prime Minister in 1998 for 13 months and again in 1999 till 2004 when he was voted out of power. The credit of making India a Nuclear Power goes to the sagacity of his political will and farsightedness. All political leaders, in the Government as well as in the opposition, have mourned his death and paid him rich tributes.
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