Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Atal Bihari Vajpayee, an inspiring politician, was born on December 25, 1924 at Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh. He was educated at Victoria (now Laximbai) College, Gwalior and D A V College, Kanpur, and holds an M A degree. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1957. A founder-member of Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS), Vajpayee has participated in various social and cultural activities. He was the Prime Minister of India in 1996 and again from 1998 to May 19, 2004. Vajpayee is regarded as the only Prime Minister after Jawaharlal Nehru to become the Prime Minister of India through three successive tenures. Apart from politics, Vajpayee is also interested in writing poems. He has served as an editor and has published a book of poetry. Vajpayee was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1992, admiring his services to the nation, and the Lokmanya Tilak Puruskar and the Bharat Ratna Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant Award for the Best Parliamentarian, both in 1994.

[Source a (75) 18-Jan-05]