A B Vajpayee - A statesman politician

Often described as the moderate face of BJP, charismatic Atal Bihari Vajpayee is an iconic leader whose acceptability across the political spectrum broke barriers pitchforking the saffron party to centrestage of politics in the late 90s.
An orator par excellence and known for taking bold initiatives, notable being the attempt to bridge differences in Indo-Pak relations, Vajpayee, who is lauded as a statesman politician, went far beyond his BJP's nationalist political agenda.
It was Vajpayee's sway that brought in 1998 new allies to BJP, once considered a virtual untouchable in view of its rightist leanings, especially after demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992.

His detractors used to call him a "mask" of the RSS, his benign smile of moderation hiding his party's links with Hindu groups.
Undeterred by party hawks who accused him of embarking on a misdirected visit to Pakistan in 1999, Vajpayee, who is India's longest serving prime minister outside Congress party, rode triumphantly into Lahore aboard a bus, on an initiative that was pursued by his successor Manmohan Singh.
Vajpayee's diplomatic breakthrough was hailed as the dawn of a new era in Indo-Pak relations. But it was another story that Pakistan army undertook a covert operation to send its troops into Kargil that led to a limited conflict that Pakistan lost.

Vajpayee first became Prime Minister in 1996 after four decades in opposition. He lasted only 13 days as prime minister for lack of numbers.
The lack of a stable majority ended his second stint in power from 1998 after 13 months. His government collapsed after AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa withdrew her support from the coalition. He was reelected in 1999 at the head of a more stable coalition that lasted its full term.