- Rajnath Singh recalled Atal Bihari Vajpayee's humorous reply to a woman in Pakistan about Kashmir and marriage
- Vajpayee was known for speeches that critiqued opponents without losing decorum or respect
- Singh shared Vajpayee's poetic expressions of BJP's growth and personal reflections on politics
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh went down memory lane to bring back a memorable story about what former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee replied to a woman, who asked him to marry her while he was on a visit to Pakistan.
Today is the 101st birth anniversary of the former prime minister. Vajpayee was born in Gwalior in 1924. The government observes his birth anniversary as Good Governance Day.
"During a visit to Pakistan, a woman, impressed by his speech, asked 'would you marry me, and give Kashmir in exchange?' He said 'I'm ready to marry you, but I want Pakistan in dowry'," Singh said at a solo poetry recital by Kumar Vishwas in honour of Vajpayee, who was himself an excellent poet.
"Atal Bihari Vajpayee had an amazing sense of humour," the defence minister said.
Singh said the most admirable aspect of Vajpayee's speeches was that even while attacking his political opponents, he never crossed the bounds of decorum.
Recalling an instance from Himachal Pradesh, Singh said Vajpayee, while speaking in the presence of the then chief minister Virbhadra Singh, said the ministers there were "bhadra" (gentle) but not "vir" (brave).
Singh also recalled an incident from 1994, when the BJP was expanding, and many people were joining its ranks. Vajpayee, he said, expressed this growth in his poetic style at a public meeting, saying that just as one finds joy in seeing beautiful, big eyes, there is immense happiness in seeing one's lineage and family grow.
Singh said he was present with Vajpayee when he made those remarks and described it as a matter of great fortune for himself.
"Vajpayee shone on India's political horizon and will continue to shine forever," Singh said.
Vajpayee represented Lucknow in the Lok Sabha five times from 1991 to 2009.
The former prime minister always remained conscious of the idea that rising high and becoming isolated are not the same, Singh said. Vajpayee's well-known poem 'Unchai' expressed this very sentiment, which was written in 1992 after he was conferred with the Padma Vibhushan, Singh said.
Singh also recited lines from Vajpayee's poems and said that, along with height, there was also expanse in Vajpayee's life and personality.
Recalling an incident from 1998, Singh said Vajpayee was unwell and undergoing treatment at a hospital when he wrote a poem and sent it for publication in 'Dharmayug'. Vajpayee had written to the editor that the lines might not be worthy of being called a poem, but were a document of his life, Singh said.
He described the poem as a powerful portrayal of Vajpayee's resolve to never give up, even in the most adverse circumstances.
