Former Prime Minister and BJP veteran Atal Bihari Vajpayee was born in a middle-class family to Krishna Devi and Krishna Bihari Vajpayee on 25 December 1924 in Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh).

Vajpayee completed his schooling from the Saraswati Shishu Mandir, Gwalior. He did his graduation from the Victoria College, Gwalior – now Laxmi Bai College and completed his post-graduation in Political Science from Dayanand Anglo-Vedic College, Kanpur.

As a freedom fighter and his entry into politics

Vajpayee joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1939. Working with RSS was his first experience in politics.

In 1942, he and his elder brother got arrested for 23 days during the Quit India Movement.

In 1947, Vajpayee became a ‘Pracharak’, a full-time RSS worker but within a year RSS was banned for its alleged role in the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.

In 1951, Vajpayee joined the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, a Hindu right-wing political party associated with the RSS under the leadership of Shyam Prasad Mukherjee and became its national secretary and in-charge of the Northern region.

Vajpayee came into prominence with his oratorical and leadership skills, he became the face of the Jana Sangh. And soon after the death of Deendayal Upadhyaya in 1968, he became the national president of the Bhartiya Jana Sangh.

As a member of parliament

Served as a Member of Parliament for around five decades. Was elected 10 times to Lok Sabha beginning with 1957, representing six different constituencies.

Vajpayee fought his first election in 1957 where he lost to Raja Mahendra Pratap in Mathura but won from Balrampur constituency in Uttar Pradesh and was elected to the second Lok Sabha. Post this, he had four more terms as a member of parliament till 1984, but he lost the 1984 Lok Sabha elections to Madhavrao Scindia from Gwalior.

In 1986 he became the member of the Rajya Sabha and was again elected in the 10th Lok Sabha in 1991 from Lukhnow constituency and represented the same constituency till 2009.

As a cabinet minister

During 1977-79 Vajpayee served as the minister of external affairs in the Janata Party government under Morarji Desai as PM. During this tenure, Vajpayee became the first person to deliver a speech to the United Nations General Assembly in Hindi. This tenure also helped him to establish himself as a respected political leader.

As Prime Minister of India

Vajpayee was sworn in as the 10th Prime Minister of India following the 1996 General Elections, where the BJP emerged as the single largest party in the Lok Sabha. But his first tenure as PM could only last for 13 days as the government could not gather support from other parties to obtain a majority. In the following election, the BJP again emerged as the single-largest party but was able to assemble a governing coalition called the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), but the alliance could only survive for 13 months as the government lost the no-confidence motion by just one vote.

His third-term as Prime Minister came in 1999, where the BJP-led NDA won the majority seats in the Lok Sabha and Vajpayee became the first non-congress Prime Minister to complete a full-term as Prime Minister.

Major policy and economic reforms by Vajpayee as PM:

India tested its nuclear weapons at Pokhran in 1998 when the Vajpayee government was in power. India conducted five underground nuclear tests in Pokhran desert in Rajasthan, 24 years after India conducted its first nuclear test in 1974. The tests were held just a month after the government had been in power.

He also played a vital role in India’s infrastructure development, especially in the roads and highway sector. He launched National Highway Development Project and Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana. Also, the Golden Quadrilateral highway project was initiated by him.

Vajpayee also played an instrumental role in the telecom industry reforms. The New Telecom Policy was announced by the Vajpayee led government in 1999, allowing the shift from fixed license fees to a more rational revenue-sharing arrangement.

Diplomatic peace talks with Pakistan were also initiated by Vajpayee during his tenure as PM. He inaugurated a bus service from Delhi to Lahore in 1999.

Vajpayee also established a separate disinvestment ministry for the first time in India. Arun Jaitley was the first disinvestment minister. Bharat Aluminium Company (BALCO) and Hindustan Zinc, Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited and VSNL were among the most famous disinvestments done during his tenure.

As a poet and an author

Vajpayee was also a renowned poet and an author. He has authored more than 20 books including six books on his poetry collections. One collection – ‘Kya Khoya Kya Paaya’, was converted into a music album named ‘Samvedna’. Poems written by Vajpayee were composed and sung by Jagjit Singh.

Awards

Vajpayee was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1992, and he received Bharat Ratna in 2015, the highest civilian award in India.

First Published:Aug 16, 2018 6:13 PM IST