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Padma Awards: Ghulam Nabi Azad, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee among political veterans honoured
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, a former member of the politburo of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), was the chief minister of West Bengal from 2002 to 2011.
Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan Singh, his Bengal counterpart and Communist leader Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee were conferred with Padma Vibhushan (posthumous) and Padma Bhushan, respectively. Among other notable political leaders from across the spectrum to receive the country’s third-highest civilian award of Padma Bhushan is Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Singh, who was the chief minister of the BJP-led government in UP during the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, passed away on August 21, 2021. Bhattacharjee, a former member of the politburo of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), was the chief minister of West Bengal from 2001 to 2011. Bhattacharjee has refused the award.
The Narendra Modi-led union government announced the Padma awards on the eve of the country’s 73rd Republic Day on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Azad, who was elected to Rajya Sabha for five terms and twice to Lok Sabha, had been given an emotional adieu as the Leader of Opposition in the Upper House of Parliament when his term came to an end on February 16, 2021.
Lauding the senior Congress leader's contribution to the causes dear to him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said, "The person who will replace Ghulam Nabi ji (as Leader of Opposition) will have difficulty matching his work because he was not only concerned about his party but also about the country and the House."
