Vice-Prez launches coffee table book on ex-PM Vajpayee in Delhi

The book chronicles Goel’s decades-long association with former Prime Minister and Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee through rare photographs and personal recollections.

New Delhi

Dignitaries at the book launch in New Delhi on Saturday. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

Vice President (VP) CP Radhakrishnan on Saturday launched “Atal Bihari Vajpayee: The Eternal Statesman”, a coffee table book by former Union minister Vijay Goel, at Dr Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi. Governors of Bihar, Rajasthan and Haryana, along with senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi, attended the event.

The book chronicles Goel’s decades-long association with former Prime Minister and Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee through rare photographs and personal recollections. It traces Vajpayee’s journey as a poet, parliamentarian and Prime Minister, while documenting key political moments and his leadership style, spanning across his childhood, youth and later years.

Speaking at the event, the VP remembered the appreciation he received from Vajpayee as a young Jan Sangh leader on organising an event in Tamil Nadu.

“I was organising one of the early Jan Sangh meetings in Coimbatore in 1974 when the party was still very small in the state. On hearing that Vajpayee would speak at the meeting, over 10,000 people turned up. I still smile when I remember his hand on my shoulder, praising me for the large crowd we managed to gather... He meant many things to many people, but above all, he was a compassionate human being,” Radhakrishnan said.

Former BJP president MM Joshi remembered his days as the science minister during Vajpayee’s tenure as the PM, and the support he received despite informing the media about the nuclear testing a day in advance.

In the book, Goel describes Vajpayee’s emphasis on placing national interest above political considerations.

“This perhaps is the first coffee-table book of its kind on Atal ji. My association with him spanned more than five decades, and for years I felt an urge to produce a volume that captures his political journey as well as the unseen, candid moments that reflected his personality. Over time, without me realising it, a vast collection of rare photographs came together, thanks to friends, photographers, and well-wishers,” said Goel.

The book highlights Vajpayee’s relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, noting their shared emphasis on governance, organisational discipline and development-oriented policies. Goel describes the book as a tribute to Vajpayee’s leadership and legacy. He notes that the volume brings together photographs, captions and personal memories accumulated over more than five decades in the 312-page collection, which will be available across book stores for ₹4,000.

Goel recounted lessons learned during political campaigns, organisational work, and elections, including Vajpayee’s guidance during challenging political phases. Goel also recalled the period when he was inducted as a minister of state in 2001, stating that Vajpayee entrusted responsibilities gradually and encouraged discipline and public duty.

The publication includes references to major political developments, such as the NDA’s political crisis in 1999, the Kargil conflict, and Vajpayee’s return to power with a renewed mandate. It also documents Vajpayee’s interactions with party workers, colleagues and political leaders across party lines.