Bharat Ratna conferred on two former PMs, LK Advani to receive award at residence

NEW DELHI: President Droupadi Murmu conferred Bharat Ratna on five distinguished individuals on Saturday (March 30).

The recipients were former Prime Ministers Chaudhary Charan Singh and PV Narasimha Rao, veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former deputy Prime Minister LK Advani, renowned agricultural scientist and architect of the Green Revolution MS Swaminathan, and former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur.

Chaudhary Charan Singh, PV Narasimha Rao, Karpoori Thakur, and MS Swaminathan were honored with the award posthumously.

Meanwhile, 96-year-old LK Advani will receive the award at his residence.

PV Prabhakar Rao, the son of Narasimha Rao, was presented with the award bestowed upon his father by the President during a ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Jayant Singh, the grandson of Chaudhary Charan Singh, and the president of the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), accepted the honor from President Murmu.

Nitya Rao, the daughter of Swaminathan, and Ram Nath Thakur, the son of Karpoori Thakur, received the award from the President.

The event was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, union home minister Amit Shah, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, and other dignitaries.