Celebrating Manmohan Singh: The Compassionate Leader with Unyielding Strength

The concept of a reserved politician is quite difficult to envision. Unless that politician happens to be Manmohan Singh.

Following the passing of the prior Indian prime minister on Thursday, extensive remarks have been made regarding the “kind and soft-spoken leader” who altered the trajectory of Indian history and affected the lives of countless individuals.

His state funeral is scheduled for Saturday and the Indian government has declared an official mourning period lasting seven days.

In spite of an illustrious career – serving as governor of India’s central bank and federal finance minister prior to being a two-term prime minister – Singh never projected the persona of a grandstanding politician, lacking the public bravado of many of his colleagues.

Although he participated in interviews and hosted press conferences, especially during his initial term as prime minister, he opted to remain silent even when his administration was entangled in scandals or when allegations of corruption arose against his cabinet ministers.

His gentlemanly mannerisms were both criticized and admired in equal measure.

His supporters claimed he was discerning not to engage in unnecessary conflicts or issue extravagant promises, and that he concentrated on outcomes – an example being the pro-market reforms he initiated as finance minister which unveiled India’s economy to global markets.

“I don’t believe anyone in India thinks that Manmohan Singh could engage in any wrongdoing or corruption,” his former colleague in the Congress party, Kapil Sibal, once remarked,. “He was exceedingly prudent, and he consistently aimed to remain on the right side of the law.”

Conversely, his rivals jeered at him, asserting that he displayed a sort of vagueness inappropriate for a politician, let alone the leader of a nation with over a billion citizens. His voice – deep and breathless, almost like a weary whisper – frequently became the subject of humor.

However, that very voice was also charming to many who found him relatable in a political arena typically characterized by high-pitched and high-energy speeches.

Singh’s reputation as a media-averse, humble, introspective politician never waned, even as his contemporaries, including members of his own party, underwent significant transformations.

Nonetheless, it was the composure with which he navigated every circumstance – even the challenging ones – that rendered him truly unforgettable.

Hailing from a modest background in what is now Pakistan, Singh was India’s inaugural Sikh prime minister. His personal journey – as an economist educated at Cambridge and Oxford who overcame tremendous obstacles to ascend the ranks – combined with his portrayal as an honest and contemplative leader, had already established him as a figure of admiration among India’s middle class.

Yet in 2005, he astonished everyone with a public apology in parliament concerning the riots of 1984 in which approximately 3,000 Sikhs lost their lives.

The riots, during which multiple Congress party members were implicated, erupted following the assassination of then-prime minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards. One of them later stated that they targeted the Congress leader to avenge a military operation she had commanded against separatists hiding in Sikhism’s holiest temple in Amritsar, northern India.

It was an audacious decision – no other premier, including those from the Congress party, had ventured so far as to issue a formal apology. However, it extended a healing gesture to the Sikh community, and politicians from various parties admired him for this valiant act.

Years later, in 2008, Singh’s subtle leadership garnered further acclaim after he formalized a significant agreement with the US that concluded India’s prolonged nuclear isolation, granting India access to nuclear technology and fuel for the first time since it conducted tests in 1974.

This agreement faced immense backlash from opposition leaders and even from Singh’s own allies, who worried that it could jeopardize India’s foreign strategy. Nevertheless, Singh succeeded in salvaging both the agreement and his government.

The period from 2008 to 2009 also experienced global financial instability, yet Singh’s strategies were credited for protecting India from its impact.

In 2009, he propelled his party to a commanding victory and resumed his role as Prime Minister for a second term, solidifying his reputation as a compassionate leader, or rather, the exhilarating notion that leaders could embody benevolence.

For many, he became a symbol of virtue, the “reluctant prime minister” who avoided the limelight and hesitated to make grand gestures but was also willing to make bold choices for the future of his nation.

Then, circumstances started to deteriorate.

A series of corruption charges – initially concerning the Commonwealth Games hosting, followed by the illicit allocation of coal fields – beset the Congress party and Singh’s administration. Several of these corruption allegations were subsequently revealed to be false or inflated. Some cases from that era remain with the courts.

However, Singh had already begun to sense some strain. Throughout his term, he made various attempts to mend relations with India’s arch-rival neighbor Pakistan, aspiring for an easing of the long-standing chilly relations.

This strategy was sharply scrutinized in 2008 when a terror attack orchestrated by a Pakistan-based terror organization resulted in the deaths of 171 individuals in Mumbai.

The 60-hour siege, one of the bloodiest in the nation’s history, ignited a torrent of accusations, as the opposition charged the government’s “leniency” towards terrorism as being responsible for the catastrophe.

In the subsequent years, various decisions made by Singh backfired considerably.

In 2011, an anti-corruption uprising spearheaded by social activist Anna Hazare rattled Singh’s government. The frail 72-year-old emerged as a symbol for the middle class as he advocated for stringent anti-corruption legislation in the country.

As a champion of the middle class himself, Singh was expected to tackle Hazare’s demands with more sensitivity. Instead, the prime minister attempted to suppress the movement, enabling the police to detain Hazare and dismantle his protest.

This action fueled a surge of public and media animosity towards him. Those who once revered his understated approach began to question their earlier perceptions of him, viewing his quiet demeanor through a less charitable lens.

The sentiment intensified the following year when Singh took over a week to address the shocking gang rape and murder of a young woman in Delhi.

Compounding the situation, India’s economic growth began to decelerate. Corruption burgeoned and employment opportunities dwindled, inciting waves of public outrage. Singh’s modest character, which previously rendered each of his actions as noteworthy, began to be characterized as complacency, indecision, and even hubris by some.

Nonetheless,Singh never attempted to defend or clarify himself and accepted the criticism silently.

That was up until 2014. During an uncommon press conference, he declared that he would not pursue a third term in office.

Nonetheless, he also aimed to rectify the narrative. “I truly believe that history will assess me more favorably than the current media or, for that matter, the opposition parties in parliament did,” he stated, after outlining some of the major achievements of his time in office.

He proved to be correct.

As it turned out, neither the Congress party nor Singh could fully rebound from the repercussions as they lost the general elections to the BJP. Yet, despite numerous challenges, Singh’s reputation as a compassionate and perceptive leader endured.

During his premiership and despite a second term marred by controversies, he preserved an air of personal dignity and integrity.

His policies were perceived as focusing on the middle class and the economically disadvantaged – he sanctioned substantial salary increases for central employees, kept inflation under control, and launched notable initiatives in education and employment.

This may not have sufficed to elevate him from the complexities of politics or protect him from certain setbacks in his career.

However, there was more to his reserve; he was a leader of formidable determination.