NEW DELHI: Late BJP leader Vijay Kumar Malhotra and three other personalities from Delhi were selected for the prestigious Padma awards on the eve of the Republic Day.
Malhotra got the Padma Bhushan, highest for any personality in the city, posthumously in the “public affairs” category. Besides, three other public figures got the awards, all of them in the Padma Shri. They include former JNU vice chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar in the “literature and education” category, R V S Mani for “civil services”, and Prof R Sreedher for radio broadcasting.
Malhotra had a long active career in politics, that included the post of chief executive councillor of Delhi’s Metropolitan Council, which was the chief minister equivalent in 1967, and president of Janata Party, Delhi, in 1977. He was also the Delhi president of the BJP from 1980 to 1984. In the 45-year-long career, he was elected to Parliament five times and went to the Assembly twice.
M Jagadesh Kumar, on the other hand, served as the vice chancellor of JNU. As the VC, he was often in the news for controversial reason. He is currently the chairman of the governing body of National Council of Science Museums.
Mani is a former under secretary in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and is known for authoring books on terrorism.
Sreedher has had a long career in broadcasting. Known as the father of community radio in India, he has played a pivotal role in shaping how communities use the airwaves to amplify their voices, preserve their cultures, and solve local problems.