Vajpayee was my closest friend for 65 years: LK Advani

New Delhi: Describing former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee as the country’s tallest statesmen, BJP veteran and party patriarch’s close associate since their RSS pracharaks days L.K. Advani on Thursday said he was at loss for words to express his deep grief and sadness. Vajpayee passed away after a prolonged illness at the AIIMS.

“I will miss Atalji immensely,” said the former deputy prime minister in Vajpayee government, who was the late PM’s friend for over 65 years.

In his condolence message, the veteran BJP leader recalled Vajpayee’s “captivating leadership qualities, mesmerising oratory, soaring patriotism and above all, his sterling humane qualities like compassion, humility and his remarkable ability to win over adversaries despite ideological differences have all had a profound effect on me in all my years in public life.”

“I cherish the memories of my long association with him, right from our days as pracharaks of the RSS, to the inception of Bharatiya Jana Singh, the struggle of the dark months during the Emergency leading to the formation of Janata Party and later the emergence of the Bharatiya Janata Party in 1980,” said Mr Advani.

The BJP veteran said Vajpayee will be remembered as the pioneer of the first-ever stable non-Congress coalition government at the Centre and he had the privilege of working as his deputy for six years.