The Indian government has conferred the country's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, posthumously on the social reformer and freedom-fighter, Jayaprakash Narayan.

Popularly known as JP, Mr Narayan was at the forefront of a mass movement against the Congress goverment in Bihar state, in the early 1970s.

The movement later brought to power the first non-Congress government in the country, led by the Janata Party which he helped to found.