This happened right before Sonia Gandhi, the former head of the Congress, was scheduled to make her Rajya Sabha debut
Latest Politics Updates : Dr. Manmohan Singh, the former prime minister of India, will leave the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, ending his three-decade tenure as a member of the Upper House.
This happened right before Sonia Gandhi, the former head of the Congress, was scheduled to make her Rajya Sabha debut. Sonia Gandhi, a resident of Rajasthan, will take Dr. Singh’s position in the Upper House of Parliament.
This time, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge wrote a heartfelt letter to the outgoing Indian prime minister. Singh’s retirement, according to Kharge’s letter, marks the end of an era.
Manmohan Singh, he added, will always be a “hero” to the middle class and young people with ambition. In addition, he praised the former prime minister, calling him a “leader and guide to the industrialists and entrepreneurs, and a benefactor to all those poor who were able to climb out of poverty due to your economic policies.”
Kharge further asserted that the UPA government’s work served as the basis for the “little reforms done by the current government”. He enumerated programs including Aadhaar cards, zero-balance bank accounts, and price deregulation for gasoline and fuel.
Complete text of the letter from Mallikarjun Kharge to Manmohan Singh
An era ends today as you retire from the Rajya Sabha, having served for almost thirty years. There are very few who can claim to have served our country with greater devotion and dedication than you. You have done more for this country and its citizens than most others have.
Being a member of your cabinet has been an honor for me personally. Throughout the past ten years, as the head of the Congress Party in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, you have consistently been a valuable advisor and a wellspring of wisdom. You have made it a point to be available for the Congress during the past few years. The party and I will always be appreciative of this.
You have demonstrated that economic policies can be pursued that benefit big industry, young people starting their own firms, small businesses, the salaried class, and the impoverished equally. You were the one who demonstrated that even the impoverished can contribute to the development of their country and escape poverty. During your tenure as Prime Minister, India managed to bring 27 crore people out of poverty, the largest number of impoverished people in the world. This was made possible by your policies.
In times of hardship, the rural workers in your government continue to receive assistance through the MGNREGA plan. Through this program, you have made sure that the country, and especially the rural poor, may live with dignity and earn a living. For this, they will always be grateful.
Your decision to pursue the Indo-US Nuclear Deal, even at the risk of jeopardizing your administration, was a fitting demonstration of the Congress party’s patriotic legacy and attitude of sacrifice for the sake of national security. You demonstrated your strength as an unwavering negotiator and guided India to assume her rightful place in the world at this historic moment.
This was made possible by the admiration and esteem that the presidents of the United States and other international leaders held for you. Their regard for you grew much more amid the Great Financial Crisis. “Whenever the Indian Prime Minister speaks, the whole world listens to him,” is something that President Obama once said about you, in my memory. I am merely highlighting a handful of your numerous achievements to the country.
Your influence has greatly affected the times we live in. The economic prosperity and stability that we currently experience are a result of the groundwork that you and our former Prime Minister, Shri P.V. Narasimha Rao, lay. Because of their political prejudices, the present group of leaders who have benefited from your work are hesitant to give you credit.
In fact, it seems like they make it their mission to disparage you and launch personal assaults. We are aware, though, that you are kind enough to forgive everyone for that.
The effort started by you under the UPA government laid the foundation for the meager reforms carried out by the current administration. The effort that your government started to guarantee the direct transfer of benefits to specific beneficiaries through the creation of zero balance accounts and the beneficiary’s unique identity through Aadhaar was appropriated by the government that came after you without giving you credit.
Sometimes it seems like the excellent work you started is being gradually undone. Your hard work of deregulating the pricing of gasoline and diesel appears to have been entirely undone by the current administration. The average citizen is paying excessive taxes to the current administration, while oil companies profit from cheap oil prices. A further area in which the government has regressed is the rise in economic disparity and the number of those compelled to turn to the government for subsistence.
The dignity and strength that you brought to the Prime Minister’s office are greatly missed by the country. Your experience and insight will be missed by the Parliament. Your calm, collected, gentle, yet statesmanlike remarks stand in stark contrast to the cacophonous, lies-filled voices that characterize today’s politics. Because of the state of politics today, being dishonest is being equated with clever leadership.
I vividly remember your speech regarding demonetisation, in which you described what has turned out to be a dire reality as “an organised loot and legalised plunder” and “monumental management failure.” You demonstrated that criticism may be offered without becoming personal. The lies of the current administration will soon be exposed by the country and its citizens. The truth cannot be concealed, just as the sun and moon can never be. Soon, people will understand how important what you said is.
You will always be seen as a leader and mentor by businesspeople and industrialists, a hero to the middle class and ambitious youth, and a benefactor to the impoverished who were able to escape poverty as a result of your economic policies.
I hope that even after you step down from active politics, you’ll still be our nation’s moral compass and wise voice by engaging with the populace as much as you can. I hope you have health, happiness, and serenity.