Vajpayee, Atal Bihari (ä`täl bihär`ē väj`pī'), 1926–, Indian politician, prime minister of India (1996, 1998–2004). He began his career as a journalist, entering politics as an unsuccessful parliamentary candidate in 1950. He was (1951) a founding member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the Hindu nationalist precursor of the Bharatiya Janata party Bharatiya Janata party (bär`ətēə jän`ətə)
..... Click the link for more information. (BJP). An able orator, Vajpayee won election to parliament in 1957; in 1975 he was imprisoned for opposing Prime Minister Indira Gandhi Gandhi, Indira (ĭndē`rə gän`dē), 1917–84, Indian political leader; daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru .
..... Click the link for more information. 's state of emergency. During the tenure (1977–79) of the coalition government that defeated Gandhi and her party, Vajpayee served as foreign minister and became the head (1979–86, 1992–) of the newly formed BJP. When the BJP won the largest number of parliamentary seats in 1996, Vajpayee became prime minister; failing to form a coalition, he resigned 13 days later. After the 1998 elections gave the BJP a greater representation in parliament, Vajpayee again became prime minister; he was returned to office in 1999. Vajpayee softened some of the more strident nationalist and anti-Muslim rhetoric of other BJP members and continued the free-market reforms begun by preceding governments. His government also strongly supported the development of India as a nuclear power; several nuclear tests were conducted in 1998. After the BJP's loss in the 2004 elections Vajpayee declined to serve as opposition leader. He has written a number of books, including collections of his speeches, a work on Indian foreign policy, and poetry.

Vajpayee, Atal Bihari

(born Dec. 15, 1924, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India) Leader of India's pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and prime minister of India in 1996 and from 1998 to 2004. Politically active as a teenager, he was briefly jailed by British colonial authorities. He was first elected to parliament in 1957 as a member of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, a forerunner of the BJP. He served as foreign minister in the late 1970s and helped formally establish the BJP in 1980. In 1992 he was one of the few Hindu leaders to speak out against the destruction of the historic Babri Masjid mosque by anti-Muslim extremists. Elected prime minister in May 1996, he was unable to form a government and resigned after 13 days. In 1998 and 1999 he was again elected prime minister as head of a BJP-led coalition. In May 1998 nuclear weapons tests ordered by Vajpayee drew international condemnation and economic sanctions. In 2000 his government began an extensive program of divestment of public funds from several key state-run industries. Under his leadership India achieved steady economic growth and became a world leader in information technology. In 2004 his coalition was defeated in parliamentary elections, and he resigned from office.