NEW DELHI: It’s that time of the year when speculation mounts over the possible recipients of the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour. Among the awardees this year could be towering politicians. There could also be a surprise element on the list that is released around Republic Day.
While all sorts of names are doing the rounds, sources said industrialist Ratan Tata and former prime minister Manmohan Singh are in the preliminary shortlist for the most coveted award, albeit posthumously. The demand for conferring it on Tata picked up pace after his demise in October. The Maharashtra cabinet, too, passed a resolution recommending it.
The demand for honouring Manmohan Singh came from the Congress and a few NDA partners, after he passed away on December 26. The government in its outreach offered two plots within the Rashtriya Smriti Sthal to build his memorial. Another legacy could be up for grabs if Dalit icon and BSP founder Kanshi Ram figures on the list.
Among the other names that are doing the rounds are SP’s Mulayam Singh Yadav, Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar, educationists Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule, Bihar’s first CM Shri Krishna Singh, B P Mandal, whose Mandal Commission report triggered social engineering and gave reservations to OBCs, and former Odisha CM Biju Patnaik.
Before or after R-Day
The Union government could recommend three-four names for the Bharat Ratna before Republic Day or like last year after February 5, when Delhi is scheduled to go for assembly elections.