former Deputy Prime Minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Lal Krishna Advani, was admitted to Delhi’s Apollo Hospital on Tuesday. The 96-year-old leader’s condition is reportedly stable.
Earlier, on July 3, Advani was also admitted to Apollo Hospital but was discharged the following day after a brief stay. Just a week before that, he was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) for age-related health issues and was discharged a day later.
On March 31, President Droupadi Murmu awarded Advani with India’s highest civilian honor, the Bharat Ratna, at his residence. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, and former Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu attended the ceremony.
A Pioneering Force in BJP’s Rise
Born on November 8, 1927, in Karachi, Advani joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) at the age of 14. Following the Partition in 1947, he and his family migrated to India. In 1951, Advani became a member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, formed by Syama Prasad Mookerjee. He entered the Rajya Sabha in 1970 and became the party president two years later.
During the Emergency in 1975, Advani, along with his party colleague Atal Bihari Vajpayee, was arrested. After the Janata Party government was established under Morarji Desai in 1977, Advani served as the Information and Broadcasting Minister. He was one of the founding members of the BJP in 1980.
Advani played a crucial role in propelling the BJP from winning just two seats in the 1984 general elections to becoming a major political force in the 1990s. His leadership in the Ram Janmabhoomi movement significantly boosted the BJP’s electoral success.
He served as the BJP president for three terms and later held the positions of Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government. In the 2009 general elections, Advani was named the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, although the party did not win the elections.
