Opposition leaders give lessons in governance at Vajpayee's condolence meet

At a condolence meeting hosted by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the memory of Atal Bihari Vajpayee in New Delhi on Monday evening, Opposition leaders spoke about the values of secularism, humanism and inclusive nationalism that the former prime minister stood for with appeals to walk on the path of 'rajdharma' shown by Vajpayee during his lifetime.  

Speaking at the condolence meeting for Vajpayee, who passed away on August 16, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the BJP founder lived his life true to his name 'atal', and neither buckled under pressure nor lost hope despite the odds. The Pokhran nuclear tests in May 1998 were evidence that Vajpayee was indomitable, Modi said. The PM said Vajpayee's efforts led to terrorism becoming an important issue on the world stage.  

Modi said Vajpayee, when faced with "political untouchability" when his 13-day old government fell in 1996, didn't lose hope, and also showed the way when it came to managing coalition politics. 

Senior BJP leader L K Advani reminisced about his 65-year association with Vajpayee. Advani said Vajpayee and he would watch movies together, read the same books and that his friend and guide of over six decades was also a great cook. While Advani, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat, BJP chief Amit Shah and others spoke of Vajpayee as a model RSS volunteer, Opposition leaders said Vajpayee was a unifier, a democrat and believed in secular values. 

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said the distance seen between the ruling party and the Opposition today was not there earlier and Vajpayee was a consensus builder. Azad said Vajpayee was such an eloquent speaker that even his criticism sounded pleasant, whereas there are some leaders who, even when they say something good, make it sound like an abuse. Azad said he had worked closely with Vajpayee during the P V Narasimha Rao-led Congress government between 1991 to 1996, and probably came to understand the great man better than some in his own party.

National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah and Peoples' Democratic Party's Mehbooba Mufti urged the Modi government to follow the path shown by Vajpayee for resolving the Kashmir issue and reach out to the people in the Valley and start a dialogue with Pakistan. Vajpayee was perhaps the first prime minister who trusted the people of Kashmir Valley and won their trust also, Mehbooba said. She said Vajpayee might have been a BJP leader but he was a prime minister of all Indians. 

Abdullah said Vajpayee had a "big heart" and did not differentiate between the people on the basis of religion and region. Vajpayee always tried to end hatred, Abdullah said, ending his speech with cries of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' and 'Jai Hind'. 

Socialist leader Sharad Yadav said Vajpayee exuded love and humanism. Communist Party of India's (CPI's) D Raja underscored the need to follow Vajpayee's advice on following 'rajadharma', or constitutional morality. Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha leader Derek O'Brien said Vajpayee stood for secularism.