Shimla : On the occasion of the 80th birth anniversary of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, along with his cabinet colleagues and the state Congress Chief, paid a heartfelt tribute to the late Prime Minister.
During the commemoration, the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister highlighted the significant contributions of Rajiv Gandhi towards India's progress.
The Chief Minister emphasised that Rajiv Gandhi's reforms were instrumental in shaping modern India, taking note of his role in advancing technological progress, enhancing democratic participation through electoral reforms and working towards women's empowerment.
"Rajiv Gandhi ji was the founder of modern India. He worked for the positive development of the country. He has done positive development for the democratic setup of the country; he ensured youth of 18 could vote. He brought a revolution in the field of informational technology. He gave women reservations in the civic body. Today, India is leading across the country in the field of technology, and it is the contribution of Rajiv Gandhi", said the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister.
Additionally, the Chief Minister also paid tribute to Rajiv Gandhi on X. "His (Rajiv Gandhi) vision, which included empowerment of youth power, support for unity and secularism, is an invaluable legacy for us," wrote the CM on X.
"Shri Rajiv Gandhi ji ensured active participation of youth in strengthening the democracy of the country by reducing the voting age from 21 to 18 years", added the Chief Minister in another post commemorating the late Prime Minister.
Earlier, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge paid tributes to the former Prime Minister, "Today the country is celebrating Sadbhavana Diwas. Former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, was a great son of India. He ignited a ray of hope in crores of Indians and with his unprecedented contribution, he brought India into the 21st century. His many notable initiatives like lowering of voting age to 18 years, strengthening of Panchayati Raj, telecom and IT revolution, computerisation programmes, continuing peace accords, women empowerment, universal immunisation programme and new education policy with emphasis on inclusive education brought about transformational changes in the country. We pay heartfelt tribute to Bharat Ratna, Rajiv Gandhi ji on his birth anniversary."
Born on August 20, 1944, Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) suicide bomber during an election rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, on May 21, 1991. Rajiv Gandhi took charge of Congress in 1984 after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and became India's youngest Prime Minister at the age of 40.