Pakistan is a paradigm example of a failed state that has undergone an extremely dangerous form of radical Islamisation.
Atal Behari Vajpayee (25 Dec 1924 - present)
Atal Bihari Vajpayee was born on December 25 1924, in Gwalior. His father
name is Shri Krishna Bihari Vajpayee. Atal Bihari Vajpayee has earned a masters
degree in political science from the Victoria College now Laxmibai College and
DAV College . He began his involvement in politics as a freedom-fighter during
the Quit India Movement of 1942-1945.
He was one of the founding members of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (Indian People's
Union), a party linked to the Hindu organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS),
of which he was the President between 1968 and 1973. He was first elected to the
Parliament of India in 1957 and was the leader of the Jana Sangh political party
up to the formation of the Janata Party in 1977. He served as the Minister for
External Affairs in the government of Morarji Desai from March 1977 to July
1979. In 1980, he left the Janata Party,and helped form the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP). He was leader of the BJP parliamentary party between 1980 and 1984,
1986 and between 1993 and 1996. He was the leader of the Opposition in the 11th
Lok Sabha. Serving in both the lower house, the Lok Sabha , and the upper house,
the Rajya Sabha , he has represented his home town of Gwalior, and the city of
Lucknow.
On October 13, 1999, he took charge as Prime Minister of India for the second
consecutive term at the head of a new coalition government, the National
Democratic Alliance. He was Prime Minister for a short period in 1996. He is the
only Prime Minister since Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to have become Prime Minister
of India through three successive mandates.
A veteran Parliamentarian whose career stretches over four decades, Shri
Vajpayee has been elected to the Lok Sabha (House of the People) nine times and
to the Rajya Sabha (House of the States) twice.
Educated at Victoria (now Laxmi Bai) College, Gwalior and DAV College, Kanpur,
Uttar Pradesh, Shri Vajpayee holds an M.A (Political Science) degree and has
many literary, artistic and scientific accomplishments. He edited Rashtradharma
(a Hindi monthly), Panchjanya (a Hindi weekly) and the dailies Swadesh and Veer
Arjun. His published works include "Meri Sansadiya Yatra" (four volumes), "Meri
Ikkyavan Kavitayen", "Sankalp Kaal", "Shakti-se-Shanti", "Four Decades in
Parliament" (speeches in three volumes), 1957-95, "Lok Sabha mein Atalji" (a
collection of speeches); Mrityu Ya Hatya", "Amar Balidan", "Kaidi Kaviraj Ki
Kundalian" (a collection of poems written in jail during Emergency); "New
Dimensions of India's Foreign Policy" (a collection of speeches delivered as
External Affairs Minister during 1977-79); "Jan Sangh Aur Mussalman"; "Sansad
Mein Teen Dashak" (Hindi) (speeches in Parliament - 1957-1992 - three volumes;
and "Amar Aag Hai" (a collection of poems) 1994.
Shri Vajpayee has served on a number of important Committees of Parliament. He
was Chairman, Committee on Government Assurances (1966-67); Chairman, Public
Accounts Committee (1967-70); Member, General Purposes Committee (1986); Member,
House Committee and Member, Business Advisory Committee, Rajya Sabha (1988-90);
Chairman, Committee on Petitions, Rajya Sabha (1990-91); Chairman, Public
Accounts Committee, Lok Sabha (1991-93); Chairman, Standing Committee on
External Affairs (1993-96).
India's second highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan. He was also
conferred the Lokmanya Tilak Puruskar and the Bharat Ratna Pt. Govind Ballabh
Pant Award for the Best Parliamentarian, both in 1994. Kanpur University
honoured him with an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy in 1993.
