Said- knew that the country would be safe in the hands of Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister.
New Delhi. The then Congress President Sonia Gandhi had chosen Manmohan Singh to lead the country in 2004. He believed that no one could question Manmohan Singh's honesty and he had a deep understanding of governance. Sonia Gandhi was confident that the arrival of Manmohan Singh would remove the doubts prevailing in the minds of the people about the efficiency of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and would help in carrying forward the policies started years ago.
Gandhi has explained the reasons for this decision in his much-awaited memoir – 'Belonging: A Journey of Love'. This book published by 'HarperCollins India' hit the market on Tuesday. When he took the final decision to reject the post of Prime Minister, it had to be decided who would take the responsibility of this post and take the oath of office.
Economic reforms took place under the leadership of PV Narasimha Rao.
Gandhi has written in the book, there were many senior colleagues who were experienced and qualified for the post and would have happily accepted it. But among all of them there was one person on whom I had my eye on for a long time, a person on whom no one could point a finger and who had a deep and better understanding of governance. He was Dr. Manmohan Singh, member of the Congress Working Committee. In the book, she writes that as an experienced economist, she had implemented economic reforms in India under the leadership of then Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao when she was Finance Minister in the early 1990s.
Manmohan Singh understood the struggles very well
Elaborating on the reasons for choosing Singh to lead the country, he said, “He was not associated with any particular faction within the party. By that time the image of Congress had become 'left-leaning' and our government was also going to get the support of communist parties. I felt that Dr. Manmohan Singh would be able to allay the apprehensions of those who had doubts about the ability of our government to carry forward the policies initiated years ago. Gandhi says that Singh was born in a Sikh family in a village in Punjab, which is now part of Pakistan. Having lost his mother at an early age, he understood the difficulties and struggles very well.
Manmohan Singh was very honest
He said, his sharp intellect and hard work took him from a remote village school to the universities of Oxford and Cambridge and from there to international platforms. Apart from all his achievements as a scholar and technical expert, what I knew best about Dr. Singh was that he was extremely kind-hearted, sensitive and his integrity could not be questioned. She said, I knew that our beloved country would be safe in their hands. I discussed it with my senior colleagues and now they seemed to largely agree with my decision. When I suggested the name of Dr. Manmohan Singh, he did not object.
Manmohan Singh rejected the post of PM
Gandhi said that no one could question Dr. Manmohan Singh's extensive experience or his reputation as an honest man who would work only in the interest of India. Sonia Gandhi recalled that Manmohan Singh was personally asked whether he would accept the post. He initially refused, but later his hesitation was overcome and he was persuaded to do so. Earlier, as the leader of her party and chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party, it was her duty to meet the President and stake her claim to form the next government.
Story of going to Rashtrapati Bhavan with Manmahon Singh
He wrote in the book, I asked my colleague Dr. Manmohan Singh to accompany me. It was 18th May, when we reached Rashtrapati Bhavan. Its huge and magnificent walls stood tall amidst the scorching heat of the sun. A flock of pigeons were hovering around a large fountain made of sandstone in the middle of the 'Eastern Court' of that luxurious building. He wrote, As soon as our vehicles stopped at the entrance, a flood of emotions flooded my mind. I had been there many times before with my mother-in-law and Rajiv, but this time I was walking through the long, dark corridors of Rashtrapati Bhavan for a different purpose. He wrote in the book, We reached my residence at 10, Janpath from Rashtrapati Bhavan. I dropped Dr. Singh to his car. There was no discussion between us regarding the post of Prime Minister during our return or even before that. I didn't say anything to him even at that time. Like everyone else, he too had naturally assumed that this responsibility (the responsibility of the post of Prime Minister) would go to me only.
First meeting with Indira Gandhi
In the book, Sonia Gandhi mentioned how she was internally confused about whether she should accept the post of Prime Minister or not and in the end she listened to the voice of her conscience. In this memoir, she describes her marriage with Rajiv Gandhi, her first meeting with her mother-in-law and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and her efforts to adapt to Indian culture, which included learning Hindi, wearing sarees, and adopting Indian food and culture.
Coalition government lasted for a decade
It also describes the major tragedies that changed the Gandhi family. These include the death of Sanjay Gandhi in a plane crash, the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984 and the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi in 1991. The memoir also throws light on the political events leading to the victory of the Congress-led alliance in the 2004 elections. At that time Sonia Gandhi had refused to become Prime Minister and instead led the party and the coalition. This alliance ran the government in the country for a decade.