Summary:
Kota: Teary-eyed and flowery tributes to the departed leader of the masses and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, continued to pour in, at the condolence meetings held by BJP, Congress and other political parties at numerous places across Hadauti region, on Friday, with people from all walks of life recalling listening to the statesman’s speeches and the lasting impact they created. “For scholars and intellectuals, Vajpayee was a divine figure, from whom they would always extract something unique and the workers and leaders of opposition parties, could not help but listen to him,” Joshi added. Vajpayee could not come to the college function but, “One sentence that Vajpayee said to me at that time and that I still hold close to my heart was — ‘God bestows upon one, unexpected rewards in abundance (bhagwan chappar phad kar deta hai), provided one works hard sincerely’,” Metha said. Kota, being a bastion of Jan Sangh and Bhartiya Janata Party, was frequented by Vajpayee.“The words of Vaypayee’s speech that he delivered in Aazad Park in Bundi in 1989 when I was only 19, still endure in my mind and give me a feeling of exhilaration and pride,” said Dr Laxman Lal Gujar, of SMS medical hospital in Jaipur. “Vajpayeeji termed the proposal very good for the development of the area and instantly assured me to act on it but unfortunately, his government could last for only 13 months,” Meena said adding, “It can hardly be expected to see a personality like Vajpayee coming again in the world.” The current BJP leaders and the Prime Minister, with a negative approach, are opposites of Vajpayee, who always held a positive attitude towards everyone, Meena further said.“Atal Bihari Vajpayee was an organization, an institution in himself, whose ideology became a direction to the country for overall development and progress,” said Hari Krishan Joshi, ex-UIT chairman, with whom Vajpayee would stay during his visits to Kota as a Jan Sangh and BJP leader..