RJD welcomes Padma Bhushan for Sushil Kumar Modi: ‘Though he was our adversary, we respected him as an opponent’

In a post on X, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said, “It is a matter of pride for Bihar that Bihar Kokila Late Sharda Sinha ji was awarded Padma Vibhushan (posthumously) in the field of art, late Sushil Kumar Modi ji was awarded Padma Bhushan (posthumously) in the field of public work and late Acharya Kishore Kunal ji was awarded Padma Shri (posthumously) in the field of civil service. Also, hearty congratulations and best wishes to Shri Bhim Singh Bhavesh Ji in the field of social service, Dr. Hemant Kumar Ji in the field of medicine, Mrs Nirmala Devi Ji in the field of arts, and Shri Vijay Nityananda Surishwar Ji Maharaj in the field of spirituality for being awarded the Padma Shri.”

Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who started his political career along with Modi as a functionary of the Patna University Students’ Union, said: “It is a matter of personal reassurance for me. I recall teaming up with him in exposing the fodder and bitumen scam of Bihar. Sushil ji was a very dedicated and meticulous political worker. His role as Bihar finance minister and to the formulation of GST is a great contribution to the body polity of the country.”

JD(U) senior leader and advisor K C Tyagi said: “I recall Sushil Kumar Modi as one of the nicest and most well-read politicians who scripted Bihar’s turnaround story with Nitish Kumar. The Padma Bhushan honour for him is a matter of pride for all of us. Sushil ji was one of the politicians we did not like to disagree with even when we were in opposite camps.”

Modi who was a sharp critic of RJD chief Lalu Prasad throughout his life also got words of praise from the Opposition party. “It is a matter of pride that a leader coming from the JP Movement and belonging to the generation of Lalu Prasad has been bestowed with the Padma award. Even though he was our political adversary, we always respected his political acumen and meticulous preparation as an opponent,” said RJD national spokesperson Subodh Kumar Mehta.

Congress spokesperson Gyan Ranjan Gupta said: “We hail the Centre’s decision for honouring the late Sushil Kumar Modi, whose political career is an inspiration for young generation politicians. We were at times overawed with his research on the subject he would speak on. Beyond politics, he would come off as an affable person having friends in every political party.”