President confers Bharat Ratna on LK Advani with VP, PM in attendance

New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday conferred the country’s highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna on former deputy prime minister LK Advani at his residence in a ceremony attended by Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah and the family members of Mr Advani were present at the ceremony, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a post on X.

President Murmu presented the Bharat Ratna to Mr Advani at his residence, it said.

Advani, a doyen of Indian politics, has served the nation with unwavering dedication and distinction for over seven decades, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

Born in Karachi in 1927, he migrated to India in 1947 against the backdrop of partition.

With his vision of cultural nationalism, he toiled hard for decades, across the length and breadth of the country, and brought about a transformation in the socio-political landscape, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

"When the Emergency put India's democracy at risk, the indefatigable crusader in him helped guard it against authoritarian tendencies," it said in the post on X and shared pictures of the ceremony.

Mr Advani (96) served as the deputy prime minister from June 2002 to May 2004 and as the Union Home Minister from October 1999 to May 2004. He had been BJP president multiple times -- from 1986 to 1990, 1993 to 1998 and 2004 to 2005.

PTI with edits