Arun Jaitley inaugurates multi-media exhibition on Atal Bihari Vajpayee

NEW DELHI: Recordings of speeches delivered by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, his rare photographs and a specially- made documentary has been made part of a multi-media exhibition which was inaugurated today as part of government's celebrations for former Prime Minister's 90th birthday.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley, who inaugurated the exhibition here, said it will go on till Vajpayee's birthday on December 25, which is being celebrated as ' Good Governance Day'.

"This exhibition covers Atal ji's life from his childhood and his long political journey in still photographs and videos, his speeches as MP, speeches here and abroad and most interestingly, him as a poet," Jaitley, who also holds charge of Finance Minister, said.

When asked to comment on the demand to bestow 'Bharat Ratna' on Vajpayee, he said, "Those who take decisions, will do so, I do not want to comment on it."

He also said that there were many inspiring leaders and more such exhibitions should be organised. The exhibition is one of the several activities that the I&B ministry and Prasar Bharati has planned for Vajpayee's birthday celebrations.

A 23-minute specially-prepared documentary on Vajpayee, which is being showcased at the exhibition, has been produced by Doordarshan and would be played on national TV on December 25, officials said.

The Song and Drama Division of the I&B ministry is learnt to have prepared four compositions based on Vajpayee's poems.

The All India Radio (AIR) will also broadcast a poetry session during which renowned poets will recite their poems inspired by two well-known poems of Vajpayee.