Spanning across a myriad mix – superstar Rajinikanth, business tycoon late Dhirubhai Ambani, former Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai, sports personalities Sania Mirza and Saina Nehwal amongst others - the Padma awards this year offer an eclectic variety.
Vinod Rai whose report on the 2G allocation scam was used extensively by the BJP during the election campaign in 2014 against the Congress regime, was awarded Padma Bhushan by the NDA-government on Monday. The government also awarded the founder of Reliance Empire Dhirubhai Ambani posthumously on the eve of Republic Day. Rai was nation’s auditor from 2008 to 2013 during the Congress-led UPA regime. The report that he brought out on the 2G Spectrum allocation pointed out to huge losses to the exchequer running into lakhs of crores. The Supreme Court later struck down the allocation as “unconstitutional and arbitrary.” This year Padma Vibhushan will be given to 10 people and the Padma Bhushan to 20.
Superstar Rajinikanth, media baron Ramoji Rao, spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravishankar and sports stars Sania Mirza and Saina Nehwal are also in the list of 112 Padma awardees this year. Industrialist Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry, Maruti Suzuki chairman RC Bhargava and eminent architect Hafeez Contractor figure in the list of Padma Bhushan awardees.
Former Union Minister Jagmohan, former DRDO chief VK Aatre, cancer specialist and chairperson of Adyar Cancer Institute Dr V Shanta and eminent Bharatnatyam and Kuchipudi dancer Yamini Krishnamurthi and classical vocalist Girija Devi and Indian-American economist Avinash Dixit have been named for Padma Vibhushan.
Noted actor Anupam Kher, singer Udit Narayan, chairperson of media group Bennett, Coleman & Co. Indu Jain, spiritual leaders late Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Swami Tejomayananda and former US Ambassador to India Robert Blackwill are among the 19 eminent people chosen for Padma Bhushan.
Renowned sculptor Ram V Sutar, Manipuri theatre personality Heisnam Kanhailal, Hindi and Telugu writer Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad, Sanskrit scholar NS Ramanuja Tatacharya, Punjabi journalist Barjinder Singh Hamdard, gastroenterologist D Nageshwar Reddy and scientist A V Rama Rao have been chosen for Padma Bhushan.
Journalist Ashok Malik has been given Padma Shri for his contribution to education and literature. Mumbai-based lawyer Ujjwal Nikam, who was the prosecution counsel in the Mumbai terror attack case, actors Ajay Devgn and Priyanka Chopra will also get Padma Shri. Late actor Saeed Jaffrey, CEO of MasterCard Ajaypal Singh Banga and archer Deepika Kumari are among those who have been named for Padma Shri.