Shinzo Abe, Music Legend SP Balasubrahmanyam Among Padma Vibhushan Winners

New Delhi: Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and music legend SP Balasubrahmanyam have been awarded Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award in India, the government announced today. Celebrated singer SP Balasubrahmanyam was conferred the honour posthumously. He died in a Chennai hospital last year after almost two months of treatment.
The Padma awards were announced this evening by the government honouring 119 prominent personalities from various fields like sports, medicine, art, literature and others for their distinguished work.
Former chief minister of Assam Tarun Gogoi and former union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, both of whom died last year, have also been awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award posthumously. Former Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan has also been conferred the Padma Bhushan.