In a “shradhanjali sabha” (condolence meet) organised on Wednesday to commemorate former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee by the BJP at the National Centre for Performing Arts in Mumbai, Maharastra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced that the state government has decided to build a memorial for the late BJP veteran, reported The Indian Express.
CM Fadnavis said, “The Maharashtra government will construct a grand memorial to depict the life and works of Vajpayee in Mumbai”, the details will be decided soon, he added.
CM Fadnavis asked the party leaders to follow the footsteps of the former PM “Atal-ji showed us the path of loving this country, doing something for it. We can pay homage to him by walking on that path.” Remembering the BJP leader, he added, “He was a great social reformer and thinker whose politics centred on nation-building.”
In the condolence meet, Union Railway minister Piyush Goyal, Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik, state BJP chief Raosaheb Danve, and ministers Sudhir Mungantiwar, Chandrakant Patil, Vinod Tawde were present among other leaders, reported PTI.
Fadnavis asserted that Vajpayee has always been an inspiration for the party workers. He said, “The role he played in building an organisation which was all inclusive helped give it a pan-Indian acceptance”, reported The Indian Express.
Uttar Pradesh Governor Naik while paying tribute to the veteran leader went down the memory lane, “The Janasangha conclave under Vajpayee was held at Nariman Point in 1969. The highlight of the conclave was, Vajpayee had invited staunch rival Acharya Atre as the special guest. Atre, a greater social thinker, writer and leader of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, had accepted the invitation.”
The CM also distributed urns consisting of late former PM’s ashes to the party stalwarts, it would be immersed in 14 rivers in the state.