NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah walked alongside thousands of people in the funeral procession of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee from the BJP headquarters on Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg to Smriti Sthal.
Members of the public and BJP supporters were surprised to see the two leaders walking in the procession in the sultry weather to pay their last respects to the departed stalwart.
Security personnel, including NSG commandos, were seen having a tough time in managing the crowd of thousands of people who had congregated at the party headquarters in the national capital to pay tribute to the party veteran.
“Only Modiji can do this. See his energy level. It’s amazing. It should inspire other party leaders to work harder for the country. It should inspire them to work for common masses,” said Manoj Goyal, an Old Delhi-based businessman who was waiting near ITO to pay tribute to the former PM.
However, a BJP leader said that PM Modi was simply showing his affection and respect for his ‘guru’ and party veteran Vajpayee. “Our PM was very close to Atal ji. He also considers him his ‘guru'. It only shows the level of respect he has for Atal ji,” he said, adding that Atal Bihari Vajpayee was conferred the Bharat Ratna by the current government. Moreover, this government had also declared December 25, the birthday of Vajpayee, as Good Governance Day.
In a tweet on Thursday, PM Narendra Modi had expressed his deep sorrow following the demise of the former PM, saying, "I'm speechless, I feel a great void.”
People started gathering near the party headquarters in the morning. They were seen jostling and some clambered on trees to capture the moment on their phones as Vajpayee's cortege left the BJP headquarters for the last rites of the poet-politician.
People from across the country had gathered outside the BJP office and hundreds lined up inside to pay homage to the former prime minister.