Tears in our eyes...: Anurag Thakur congratulates LK Advani on being picked for Bharat Ratna

New Delhi: Union Minister Anurag Thakur joined fellow BJP leaders in congratulating veteran leader and former Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani on being picked for the Bharat Ratna on Saturday, saying that he had tears in his eyes.
"One of the tallest leaders of independent India who is known as a statesman, someone who expanded the BJP and the one who undertook Yatra for Ram Temple - the decision taken by PM Modi to confer the Bharat Ratna upon such a man, LK Advani has made crores of Indians very happy," Thakur said speaking to ANI on Saturday.
The Union Minister said that conferring the prestigious award to one of the strongest proponents of the Ram Mandir movement at a time when the Ram Janmabhoomi temple has been inaugurated has made every Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker emotional.
"People were overwhelmed. They remembered the time when they took bricks from their home to build the Ram Mandir. Today, the 500-year-long wait has come to an end. The majestic Ram Mandir has been built and the Pran Pratishtha has been completed. This has fulfilled the dreams of such leaders. Conferring the Bharat Ratna to such a leader who has inspired crores of workers has made us emotional. We have tears in our eyes and smiles on our faces," the Union Minister said.
Speaking about his personal ties with Advani, Thakur said, "He (Advani) had been the I&B (Information and Broadcasting) Minister earlier; I am holding that post now. He has also been the Deputy Prime Minister. I have learnt a lot from him. I express gratitude to him and congratulate LK Advani."
Saffron stalwart and senior BJP leader LK Advani will be conferred the Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian honour, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Saturday.
Born in Karachi, in present-day Pakistan, on November 8, 1927, Advani through the years had served as the President of the Bharatiya Janata Party for the longest period since its inception in 1980. Capping a parliamentary career of nearly three decades, he was, first, the Home Minister and, later, the Deputy Prime Minister in the cabinet of Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1999-2004).
Through the latter half of the 1980s and the 1990s, LK Advani focused on the singular task of building the BJP into a national political force. The results of his efforts were underscored by the 1989 General Election.
The party bounced back from its 1984 tally of 2 to achieve an impressive 86 seats. The Party position moved up to 121 seats in 1992 and 161 in 1996; making the 1996 elections a watershed in Indian democracy. For the first time since independence, the Congress was dethroned from its preeminent position, and the BJP became the single largest party in the Lok Sabha.