NEW DELHI, Feb 9: The Congress on Friday welcomed the decision to confer Bharat Ratna on former prime ministers P V Narasimha Rao and Charan Singh and Green Revolution pioneer M S Swaminathan, saying they were, are and will always be “Bharat ke Ratna” as their contribution was unprecedented.
However, the opposition party also attacked the BJP-led government, saying it is “silent” on giving a legal status to a minimum support price on crops to farmers based on the Swaminathan formula.
The opposition party’s reaction came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Rao, Singh and Swaminathan will be conferred Bharat Ratna.
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Asked about the Bharat Ratna announcements, specifically for Rao, former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, in a brief response outside Parliament, said, “I welcome them… why not?”
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, in a post on X, said: “On the behalf of Indian National Congress, we welcome the Bharat Ratna being conferred to Shri P V Narasimha Rao, Chaudhary Charan Singh and Dr M S Swaminathan.
“Former Prime Minister and former Congress president, Shri P V Narasimha Rao has tremendously contributed to nation building. Under his government, India embarked on a transformative journey with a series of economic reforms that played a pivotal role in shaping the middle class for generations to come,” Kharge said.
Rao also made significant contributions to India’s nuclear programme and a
number of foreign policy achievements marked his tenure, including the “Look East” policy, the Congress chief said.
“His vital role in the prosperity and development of our nation shall always be cherished,” he added.
Kharge also said former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh is known for his pro-farmer policies and widely respected by crores of farmers — “our Annadatas and Khet Mazdoors”.
A son of the soil, his interventions helped strengthen rural India, Kharge said.
“The legendary scientist, Dr Swaminathan is known for his unmatched contribution to the field of agricultural science and his intervention in making India self-sufficient in food grains through the Green Revolution is a milestone in nation building,” he said.
An institution builder par excellence, above all a humanitarian, he is also known as “the Father of Economic Ecology”, a richly-deserved pseudonym, Kharge added.
The Congress party applauds the vision, hard work and exceptional legacies of these national icons, which the country has always celebrated, he said.
In a post in Hindi on X, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said, “Shri PV Narasimha Rao, Chaudhary Charan Singh and Dr MS Swaminathan were, are and will always be ‘Bharat ke Ratna’. Their contribution was unprecedented, which every Indian respects.”
“The Modi government is silent on giving legal status to minimum support price to farmers based on Dr Swaminathan’s formula. Due to the stubbornness of Prime Minister Modi, 700 farmers were martyred during a movement, but the government broke its promise to the farmers. Even today, the farmers are ready to march to Delhi, but the government is not listening,” the former Union minister said.
“Providing justice to farmers is one of the main objectives of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. Our demand for ‘Kisan Nyay (justice to farmers)’ is that a legal guarantee of giving a minimum support price to farmers should be given on the basis of the Swaminathan formula. This will be a true tribute to former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singhji and Swaminathanji,” he added.
The government had earlier named former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur, a champion of backward empowerment, and L K Advani, a founding member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) who is credited with charting the course of its rise through the 1990s, for the country’s highest civilian honour.
At five, one more than the four announced in 1999, this is the maximum number of Bharat Ratna awards announced for a year. (PTI)
