Hyderabad: Union Minister Anurag Thakur praised former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee for his remarkable leadership and noted that the former Prime Minister earned the respect of both allies and opposition leaders due to his strong character and political acumen. Thakur also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for fulfilling a long-standing goal of party founders by abrogating Article 370.
Speaking to the media at the party headquarters in Hyderabad, Thakur said, “Vajpayee left a lasting impression in every role he played – whether as a politician, prime minister or responsible leader of India. The respect he commanded from former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao was unparalleled. Our party holds him in high esteem. During the Kargil war, Vajpayee’s declaration that India would not give an inch of land to Pakistan boosted the morale of our troops despite US pressure to stop the conflict.
Thakur emphasized Vajpayee’s role in reshaping India’s global image, particularly through the successful nuclear tests that shocked the world. “Under Vajpayee’s leadership, India went from international derision to praise. The media, which mocked us as a nation of beggars and snakes on the 50th Independence Day in 1997, now embraces our strength,” he added.