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Ministers pay homage to Lal Bahadur Shastri on 111th birth anniversary

by IBNS 02 Oct 2015, 11:52 am

New Delhi, Oct 2 (IBNS) Indian ministers paid homage to Lal Bahadur Shastri, the second Prime Minister of India (1964-1966) and a prominent face in Indias freedom movement, on his 111th birth anniversary on Friday.

Shastri, born in 1904 in Varanasi to Ramdulari Devi and Sharada Prasad Srivastava rose to prominence in the 1920’s after joining the freedom movement.

His slogan, ‘Jai Jawan Jai Kisan’ (Hail the soldier, hail the farmer) was widely accepted by the Indians and motivated them against the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965.

He died a sitting Prime Minister in Tashkent, Uzbekistan under mysterious circumstances.

Paying his tribute, Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi wrote on Twitter: “I bow to the proud son of India, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri on his birth anniversary.”

Railway Minister of India, Suresh Prabhu wrote: “Tributes to Lal Bahadur Shastri ji,unforgettable,great son of India,who led our country with simplicity at difficult times.”

Shastri was the First Indian to posthumously receive the Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian award, in 1966, the year of his death.