New Delhi, Jan 26, 2026
President Droupadi Murmu announced the names of Padma awardees on the eve of 77th Republic Day celebrations, recognising the distinguished and enduring service of eminent citizens in various fields, ranging from art and social work to science and medicine.
This year, the Padma awards list comprised 5 Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan, and 113 Padma Shri awardees.
The noted citizens, a majority of whom comprised ‘unsung heroes’, were selected for their quiet yet impactful contributions to society and human lives, a theme that has remained consistently during the three tenures of the Modi government, since 2014. An underlying message, of what one reads from this ‘pattern’, is that probity and integrity have trumped any bias or political affiliation as the basis for awarding India’s highest civilian honours.
The selection of Padma awardees, including Bharat Ratnas in the past decade, shows a conscious effort to acknowledge and reward leaders and luminaries from diverse fields, for their contributions and not for political and ideological affiliations.
In the past decade, many leaders from Opposition parties and those belonging to parties with strong ideological differences have also featured in the Pamda awards list. During the Congress-led regimes, such a ‘trend’ didn’t exist, and only those with their own affiliations and ideological closeness were given the Padma awards.
This year, former Kerala CM and veteran Left leader V. S. Achuthanandan has been given the Padma Vibhushan posthumously. V Natesan, another Left veteran and tribal leader, as well as former Jharkhand CM Shibu Soren, have been honoured with Padma Bhushan for their contributions in politics.
In earlier years, the recipients also included leaders from opposition and rival parties.
In 2023, Samajwadi Party patriarch and former Uttar Pradesh CM Mulayam Singh Yadav was posthumously awarded the Padma Vibhushan, while in 2021, former Jammu and Kashmir CM and Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad were conferred with the Padma Bhushan. Veteran Congressman and former Assam CM Tarun Gogoi was also honoured posthumously with the Pamda Bhushan award, the same year.
In the previous decade, several other leaders from the opposition camp were bestowed with the highest civilian honours. NCP chief Sharad Pawar was given Padma Bhushan in 2017, former Lok Sabha Speaker P. A. Sangma got Padma Vibushan posthumously in 2017 while CPI(M) leader and former West Bengal CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was also named for Padma Bhushan but he chose to decline it.
Besides the Padma Awards, India’s highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna, has also been given to individuals and leaders having strong ideological differences with the ruling party. A total of 10 noted personalities have been conferred with India’s highest civilian honour since 2014, the year when the BJP-led government came to power.
In 2015, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and educationist Madan Mohan Malaviya were honoured with Bharat Ratna. In 2019, former President and Congress veteran Pranab Mukherjee and cultural icon Bhupen Hazarika received the topmost civilian award.
Year 2024 marked a major milestone as five Bharat Ratnas were announced this year. And, those who were chosen for the top honours included socialist leader Karpoori Thakur, Congress veteran and former Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao, ex-PM Chaudhary Charan Singh, agricultural scientist Dr M S Swaminathan and also BJP stalwart Lal Krishna Advani.
Though the Padma awards are conferred on the recommendations of the Padma Awards committee, constituted every year by the Prime Minister, it has remained under cloud for long, over charges of favouritism and political messaging.
The drastic change ushered in, during the Modi government, in bestowing the country’s civilian honours shows how the selection procedure has transcended ideological barriers and divide, prioritising merit over ‘bias’.(Agency)
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