Today 25 December 2025, apart from Christmas Day, is also celebrated as Good Governance Day (Sushasan Diwas) in India since the year 2014 in memory of former Prime Minister of India, Atal Behari Vajpayee whose birth anniversary also falls today. Pertinent that this year 2024 also marks Vajpayee’s centenary i.e. 101st birth anniversary. 

Even Madan Mohan Malaviya, renowned freedom fighter and founder of Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha was also born on this day. The ruling Modi Sarkar in Dec, 2014 conferred nation’s highest civilian honour viz. Bharat Ratna upon both Vajpayee and Malaviya. 

Meanwhile, an advertisement as published on Thursday in print media by  Haryana Govt on the occasion of Sushasan Diwas uses the prefix “Bharat Ratna” before the name of former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee although the same has not been prefixed before the name of Madan Mohan Malaviya, where however Mahamana Pandit words have been used before his name. 

An Advocate at Punjab and Haryana High Court, Hemant Kumar, while strongly objecting against the usage of prefix “Bharat Ratna” before the name of former PM AB Vajpayee in Haryana Govt Public Relations Department's issued official advertisement asserted that although Vajpayee is one of the recipients of country's highest civilian honour, which was conferred on him by incumbent Modi Sarkar eleven years ago in Dec, 2014 which was however formally conferred upon him in March, 2015 but everyone especially the Department of Information, Public Relations, Languages of Haryana must be aware of the fact that a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court of India ruled in Regarding Balaji Raghavan/SP Anand Vs Union of India (15 Dec 1995) that all four national awards viz. Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri as awarded by the Government of India does not amount to ”Title” within the meaning of Article 18(1) of our Constitution, hence they can't be used as prefix or suffix before the name of recipient.

It was even laid down by the Apex Court that in the event of doing so, the recipient may be forfeited of such national honour. It is indeed shocking that such a lapse has been committed, perhaps inadvertently, by none other than in official advertisement issued by the Haryana Government. Indeed, such faux-pas/goof-up has been occurring consistently since past few years after which this Advocate has always raised this issue but it seems it has felt on deaf years of higher officials of Public Relations Department of Haryana Government.

Hemant also recalls that in the year 2007, the then Shiela Dikshit led Cong Govt in Delhi enacted Bharat Ratna Dr. BR Ambedkar Viswavidyalya (University) Act, 2007 but in the year 2016, the then Arvind Kejriwal led first AAP Govt amended the aforesaid Act by removing the twin words “Bharat Ratna” from the Short Title of the aforementioned Act and rechristened it as Dr. BR Ambedkar Viswavidyalya (University) Act, 2007.

This indeed substantiates the seriousness of the Supreme Court’s Constitution Bench Ruling dated 15 Dec 1995 which prohibits prefixing all four National Awards before the names of their recipients.