Monday, October 31 2005 13:17 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: The country today (Oct 31, 2005) fondly remembered its first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhai Patel on his 130th birth anniversary.

Leading the celebrations paying homage to the 'iron man', as Patel was popular, were Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and BJP President and Leader of Opposition L K Advani who paid floral tributes at the 'Sardar's' portrait in Central Hall of Parliament in a simple ceremony.

Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and a host of political leaders were present on the occasion.

During his four-year stint as Independent India's Home minister, Patel played a significant role in the merger of more than 600 princely states into the Union and acquired the sobriquet of 'iron man'.

He was decorated with the title of 'Sardar' when he successfully led a farmer's struggle against imposition of 30 per cent tax on agricultural land by the British at Bordoloi in Gujarat.