R.I.P Dr Manmohan Singh (1932–2024): A reformer and a gentleman

Undoubtedly, history shall judge you kindly, Dr Manmohan Singhji!

With the passing of the former prime minister, India has lost a visionary statesman, a leader of unimpeachable integrity and an economist of unparalleled stature. His policy of economic liberalisation and a rights-based welfare paradigm profoundly transformed the lives of crores of Indians, virtually creating a middle class in India and lifting crores out of poverty.

I mourn the loss of a lifelong senior colleague, a gentle intellectual and a humble soul who embodied the aspirations of India, having risen through the ranks with unwavering dedication. I am proud to have been a part of his cabinet as labour minister, railway minister and social welfare minister. A man of action rather than words, his immense contribution to nation-building will forever be etched in the annals of Indian history... His enduring legacy of ushering in India’s growth, welfare and policies of inclusivity will forever be cherished.

The life and work of Dr Manmohan Singh and the period from 1991 till 2014 will be a golden chapter in the history of India. I worked closely with him for many years. I have not met a person more humble and self-effacing than Dr Singh. He wore his scholarship lightly and never claimed credit for any of his historic achievements.

The story of India turned after Dr Singh became the finance minister. And the present middle class of India was virtually the creation of his policies as finance minister and prime minister. Throughout his tenure, he had great empathy for the poor. He did not hide the fact that many millions of India are poor and reminded us that government policies must lean in favour of the poor. Examples of his empathy are MGNREGA and the restructuring of PDS and the extension of the mid-day meal scheme.

His story has not been told fully. His achievements have not been recorded fully. I am sure when we look back upon the 23 years that Dr Singh was in active politics, we will realise his true contribution.

Starting in 2004, I was his bodyguard for nearly three years. The innermost cordon of the SPG in the prime minister’s security is managed by the Close Protection Team (CPT). I had the chance to lead that team. The Additional IG of CPT can never be far from the PM. In a situation where only one bodyguard is allowed with the PM, that bodyguard would be this person. It was my duty to shadow him all the time. Doctor saheb had only one car of his own—a Maruti 800. At the prime minister’s residence, the car would be parked behind a sparkling BMW. Manmohan Singhji used to often tell me, “Asim, I don’t like to drive around in this car (the BMW). This [Maruti 800] is my car.” I’d tell him that the BMW was not for his personal glory but had been picked by the SPG for its security features.

But every time his cavalcade drove past the Maruti, he would look at it longingly as if to remind himself: ‘I’m a middle-class person and it is my job to think about the concerns of common folk. This car worth crores is for the PM; my car is a Maruti.’

"तू इधर उधर की न बात कर, ये बता कि क़ाफ़िला कैसे लुटा? / मुझे रहज़नों से गिला तो है, पर तेरी रहबरी का सवाल है"

Sushma Swaraj's sharp words, quoting poet Shahab Jafri, rang through the Lok Sabha in 2011 as she launched a fierce attack on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, accusing him of failing to control a government engulfed in corruption. The fiery line, aimed directly at Singh’s leadership, was a challenge he could not ignore. But instead of firing back with equal force, Singh, in his trademark understated style, responded with a verse from Allama Iqbal:

माना कि तेरी दीद के क़ाबिल नहीं हूँ मैं / तू मेरा शौक़ देख मिरा इंतिज़ार देख

Singh’s calm [pushback], his measured words struck a chord, bringing the House to a hushed silence.

While he will be remembered for many things, one interesting fact about him was that he could not read the Devanagari script. Even the speeches that we have heard him deliver in Hindi were all written in Urdu’s Nastaliq script. Alvida sir!

The weight of grief bears down on me at the news of the passing of my honoured and cherished friend Dr Manmohan Singh. Obituaries, essays and books aplenty there will surely be about this great man, celebrating him as the architect of India’s economic reforms.

As prime minister, Dr Manmohan Singh was the midwife of India’s emergence as one of the world’s economic giants. I had the rare privilege of witnessing the early years of these transformative policies firsthand while we both served as finance ministers during the 1990s.

Dr Manmohan Singh, slightly awkward as a politician but undeniably upright, steadfast and resolute as a statesman, leaves behind a legacy that will inspire generations to come.

To me, he will be all that and much more. Not many people know this, and it is time that I share it with Malaysians: during the years of my incarceration, he extended a kindness that he didn’t have to—one that was neither politically expedient nor, as one can imagine, appreciated by the Malaysian government at that time. Yet, true to his character, he did it anyway. He offered scholarships for my children, particularly my son, Ihsan. Although I had declined the gracious offer, such a gesture undoubtedly showed his extraordinary humanity and generosity… In those dark days, as I navigated the labyrinth of imprisonment, he stood by me as a true friend. Such acts of quiet magnanimity defined him, and they will remain etched in my heart forever. Goodbye, my mitra, my bhai, Manmohan.

I remember an anecdote from [the time] then PM Manmohan Singh came to JNU. I was a student there. I think, Singur Nandigram had happened or perhaps it was an ‘anti-Naxal’ operation in Chhattisgarh. There was talk of campus protests. Of course, there was lots of security but the Left student organisations, probably AISA or DSU, had hung black flags all over campus and two Left students managed to disrupt the PM’s speech with sloganeering and showing black flags. They were promptly removed and apparently given expulsion notices.

We heard some days later that the PMO had called the VC and requested that the students not be expelled... after all they were well within their democratic rights to protest. What a stark contrast to Indian politics, leadership and [the] political environment today! What a testimony to why MMS was a great PM!