Atal Bihari Vajpayee's death anniversary: PM Modi pays tribute; calls his service a guiding force for a self-reliant India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday remembered former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his death anniversary .

In a post on X , PM Modi wrote, “Remembering Atal Ji on his Punya Tithi. His dedication and spirit of service towards the all-round progress of India continue to inspire everyone in building a developed and self-reliant India.”

Remembering Atal Ji on his Punya Tithi. His dedication and spirit of service towards the all-round progress of India continue to inspire everyone in building a developed and self-reliant India.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 16, 2025

The prime minister also paid floral tributes to the former PM at ' Sadaiv Atal ' Vajpayee’s memorial in Delhi. President Droupadi Murmu, Union ministers Kiren Rijiju, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, JD(U) MP Sanjay Jha, and Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta were also present.

#WATCH | Delhi | PM Modi pays floral tributes to former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his death anniversary at 'Sadaiv Atal' pic.twitter.com/e8ySuDPZPA

— ANI (@ANI) August 16, 2025

Atal Bihari Vajpayee, one of the tallest leaders of Indian politics and a founding member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), passed away on 16 August 2018 at AIIMS, Delhi, after a long illness. He was 93.

Vajpayee served as the country’s Prime Minister three times — first for a short term in 1996, and later for two full terms between 1998 and 2004.

His birthday, 25 December, is observed as Good Governance Day. In 2015, he was conferred with the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour.