The whole of India is mourning the former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, whose demise occurred at 92 years on December 26, at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi. Admitted for frank age-related ailments, his death marks the closure of a big political chapter for Indian politics. Condolences have been made across the world by leaders and the common man through their messages on different social media platforms.
Anand Mahindra, Chairman of Mahindra and Mahindra, was also part of the same list that paid their last respects. Sharing a few emotional words on his X account, he wrote, “Farewell, Dr. Manmohan Singh. You loved this Nation and your service will be long remembered. Om Shanti” with the former Prime Minister’s photograph. Such voices flooded every social media platform since then.
Harsh Goenka, Chairman of RPG Enterprises, also posted a tribute on his X account. “India mourns the death of Dr Manmohan Singh, a true statesman whose quiet demeanor belied his transformative impact. An architect of economic reforms, he shaped modern India with intellect, grace and integrity. A leader who let actions speak louder than words,” he wrote.
Writer Anand Ranganathan shared post on his X account. “When Dr Manmohan Singh arrived, our foreign exchange reserves were at 3 billion; when he left, they stood at 300 billion. Rare academic, reluctant politician, he pulled India out of a hole and dragged her in the right direction. He was pure gold-glittering but malleable,” he wrote.
Business leader Gautam Adani paid his respect as well: “Deeply saddened at the passing away of Dr Manmohan Singh. History will forever remember his key role in the transformative reforms of 1991 that reshaped India and opened its doors to the world. A rare leader who spoke softly but brought about achievements through actions and life is a masterclass in leadership, humility, and service to the nation. Will inspire generations to come.”
Former Indian cricketers also said their condolences. “My sincere condolences on the demise of our former Prime Minister Shri Manmohan Singh Ji. Om Shanti,” said Virender Sehwag.
Yuvraj Singh also joined in paying his tributes, sharing, “A visionary leader and a true statesman who worked tirelessly for India’s progress. His wisdom and humility will always be remembered. My heartfelt condolences to his loved ones.”.
AIIMS informed that Dr Manmohan Singh was brought into the emergency department after an unforeseen loss of consciousness at home. He was pronounced dead at 9:51 PM with no resuscitation attempts.
Not Health, Manmohan Singh Asked About This After 10-Hour Heart Surgery
Dr Ramakant Panda, senior cardiac surgeon and the doctor who operated on Mr. Manmohan Singh back in 2009, narrated how the ex-prim minister’s first words didn’t concern himself, but more importantly, the country. At the time, Dr Singh had just undergone a highly critical 10 to 11 hour coronary bypass heart surgery at All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, as his Prime Ministership.
“After we had got done with his heart surgery…at the time of taking out the first breathing pipe at night when a patient can speak…The first thing he asked was “how is my country? how is Kashmir”. I told him that I was not there but you never asked about your surgery. Dr Singh said that he knew I would do a good job,” remarked Dr Panda.
“I’m not worried about the surgery. I’m more worried about my country,” the former PM told Dr Panda.
The senior cardiac surgeon further emphasised, “He was a great human being, a humble person and a patriot. As a doctor, he is the ideal patient I can think of.”
Said Dr Panda, In the eyes of Dr Panda, complaints about such surgery patients are chest pain. “…But he never even once asked or complained about anything. That was the sign of a strong human being. Each time he used to come to hospital after surgery, we were at the gate to receive him, but he always told us not to,” Dr Panda said.
“At a personal level, I know that he was a man of very strong integrity. He had a very steady reserve. If he said something he will do, he will do it. You cannot change his mind,” added the speaker.
Manmohan Singh’s “Best Moment” And “Biggest Regret” As Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh, who passed away on Thursday at the age of 92, reminisced in his last press conference as the prime minister in 2014 that striking a civil nuclear deal with America and not being able to do more in the health sector were the “best moment” and “biggest regret” during his tenure in office.
The prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014, Dr. Singh is being remembered as one of the chief architects of reforms in 1991 that helped bring the Indian economy back from the brink of bankruptcy.
In his last press conference as Prime Minister on January 3, 2014, Dr Singh was asked about his “best moment” and “biggest regret” as prime minister.
“I will need time to reflect on this. But certainly, the best moment for me was when we were able to strike a nuclear deal with the United States to end the nuclear apartheid which had sought to stifle the processes of social and economic change, and technical progress of our country in many ways,” he responded to the former question.
Following a declaration by Dr Singh along with then US President George W Bush, India and the US announced in 2005 that they will collaborate on civil nuclear energy.
Eventually, this led to the conclusion of safeguards agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and India in August 2008 the conditions of which were defined through several rounds of negotiation, after which the US turned to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) for waiver to New Delhi to start the trade for civilian nuclear as what follows:
This then resulted in the September 6, 2008 waiver, thus granting India the access to civilian nuclear technology and fuel from the other countries.
Manmohan Singh On His Biggest Regret As PM
Asked about the “biggest regret” during his tenure of 10 years, Singh said he would have liked to do “a lot more” in the area of health.
“I am too sorry. I haven’t thought through this matter. But certainly I would like to do a lot more in the area of healthcare, health for children, and health for women. The National Rural Health Mission we started has yielded impressive results but there is a lot yet to be done,” he stated.
Its launch was announced in April 2005, under Dr. Singh’s leaders, National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) improved access to quality and affordable healthcare in rural areas focusing especially on poor, women, and children.
“History Will Be Kinder To Me”
In that press conference, Dr. Manmohan Singh was also interrogated by NDTV’s Sunil Prabhu on the allegations that he could have not curtailed or stopped but allowed the corruption to carry on during his watch.
He had replied to the above question with a smile: “I honestly believe history will be kinder to me than to the contemporary media or for that matter, the Opposition parties in Parliament.”
“I cannot divulge all things that happen into the cabinet system of government. I think judging from circumstances and compulsions of a coalition polity, I have done the best I could do under the circumstances,” he added.
In those days, the United Progressive Alliance-II charges were by and large subject to a single denominator: corruption in a number of ministries. It was the main reason for the Congress ‘s dismal fall in the general elections of 2014 and the dramatic ascent of the Narendra Modi-led BJP to power.
“Could not ever be bothered for resigning”
As far as Manmohan Singh was concerned, there was a question if at times he did feel “resigning” during his 10 years of service.
He went on, “Never did I get that feeling. Main enjoy kar raha hoon apne kaame main. I have tried to do my work founding upon all honesty, all sense of integrity, without any look towards fear or favour”.
Then the Congress leader was asked if these scandals such as Commonwealth and the 2G had cost the government a “great deal”.
Dr Singh was asked, “In retrospective, do you reckon there is something that you should have done differently-anything at all?”
For this, he said he felt “somewhat sad,” because he was the one who insisted that spectrum allocation should be “transparent, fair and equitable.”
“I was the one who insisted that coal blocks should be allocated on the basis of auctions. These facts are forgotten. The Opposition has a vested interest. Sometimes the media play into their hands as well, and therefore, I have every reason to believe, that when history is written of this period, we will come out unscathed.
This is not to say that there was no irregularity. There were irregularities. But the dimensions of the problems have been overstated by the media, by the CAG sometimes, and by other entities,” he said.
For more updates follow: Latest News on NEWZZY
