Panchkula, Dec. 24 -- Ahead of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 101st birth anniversary, Union Home Minister Amit Shah called him a "born patriot" and praised his strong stand on national security.

Speaking at the Haryana Police Passing Out Parade in Panchkula, Shah said Vajpayee was not only a skilled administrator and a poet but also firm in protecting the nation.

"Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji was a born patriot, a skilled administrator, and a poet at heart. However, when it came to the question of the nation's security, he was even harder than a rock. He undertook numerous struggles from the Emergency to strengthening democracy. He had the honour of leading the first full non-Congress government for five years," Amit Shah said...