New Delhi: With Union Home Minister Amit Shah by his side, Rajya Sabha member from Punjab Vikramjit Singh Sahney on Wednesday proposed conferring the Bharat Ratna on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Sahney was addressing an exhibition at the National Museum here. Shah inaugurated the exhibition showcasing 76 paintings by artist Manjit Singh that captured PM Modi’s 25 years in public service, beginning with his tenure as Gujarat chief minister.
Modi first became the chief minister of Gujarat in October 2001, and has been in public office since then, including more than 12 years tenure as the prime minister.
The event, organised by the World Punjabi Organisation, was also attended by Lieutenant Governor of Delhi Taranjit Singh Sandhu.
The inauguration of the exhibition was followed by a short documentary highlighting important landmarks in Modi’s public service, such as Demonetisation, the abrogation of Article 370, and Operation Sindoor.
Calling him a “charismatic leader”, Sahney said PM Modi and HM Shah have given a slogan of drug-free India.
“I request that Shri Narendra Modi be conferred the Bharat Ratna. If Jawaharlal Nehru can be given, Indira Gandhi can be given… then PM Modi, who raised India’s profile in the G20 and BRICS over 25 years. I request you for Bharat Ratna…(sic),” Sahney said.
“The prime minister’s 25 years of public service represents an extraordinary journey of commitment to the nation. In recognition of his dedication and unconditional service to Bharat, I believe Shri Narendra Modi Ji deserves the highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna,” he said.
Sahney was elected unopposed to the upper house of parliament in July 2022 after being nominated by the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party, which rules Punjab.
However, Sahney was among the seven Rajya Sabha MPs, alongside Ashok Kumar Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, and Raghav Chadda, who switched sides to the BJP, bringing the effective strength of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to just three in the upper house.
Sahney was conferred the Padma Shri by the President of India, Pratibha Patil, in 2008.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
Also read: Bharat Ratna is a political tool. Modi using it to position BJP as a social justice party