Tributes to former Indian leaders

Indian political leaders have issued tributes to prominent former national figures on their respective anniversaries.

On the death anniversary of former President Pranab Mukherjee, officials including Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh honored the Bharat Ratna recipient. They described him as an ‘ace administrator’ and a ‘towering statesman’ who demonstrated a commitment to constitutional values and parliamentary traditions.

Following this, leaders across the political spectrum, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, paid tribute to former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on his 94th birth anniversary. Tributes focused on his role in initiating structural economic reforms in 1991 and his implementation of social legislation, such as the Right to Information Act, during his tenure as Prime Minister.

Additional tributes to Dr. Singh were extended by Sonia Gandhi, alongside Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, noting his leadership from 2004 to 2014. Specific mention was made of his role in implementing rights-based legislation, including the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the Right to Education Act. To mark the occasion, the Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya inaugurated an exhibition titled ‘Dr Manmohan Singh: From Scholarship to Public Service’, which traces his transition from an academic economist to a statesman. The exhibition is scheduled to run until September 30.