"Conscious patriot": Shashi Tharoor's heartfelt tribute to Manmohan Singh on first death anniversary

New Delhi [India], December 26 (ANI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Friday paid tribute to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the first anniversary of his death, sharing a heartfelt video on his official X account.
Tharoor described Manmohan Singh as an "erudite and deeply decent" leader whose quiet demeanour often spoke louder than the noise of today's political discourse. While the former PM was usually referred to as an "accidental politician," Tharoor emphasised that he was, above all, a "conscious patriot."
"Today the nation pauses to mark a solemn milestone, the first death anniversary of a man whose silence often spoke louder than the clamour of our current political discourse, our former Prime Minister, the erudite and deeply decent Dr. Manmohan Singh. It has been a year since we lost him, yet the void he left in the intellectual and moral landscape of Indian public life remains palpable. Dr. Singh was in many ways, in the famous phrase, an accidental politician, but he was a very conscious patriot," Tharoor said in his video message.
He highlighted Singh's lifetime achievements, noting that dismantling the license-permit-quota raj to usher in an era of prosperity that lifted millions out of poverty alone would have been enough to define a lifetime of service. Tharoor added that history will remember him as a transformative Prime Minister who combined mild manners with unwavering conviction, exemplified by his staking his government on the civil nuclear deal, which secured India's place on the global stage.
"History will remember him, not merely as a technocrat who unshackled the Indian elephant in 1991, dismantling the license permit quota raj and ushering in an era of prosperity that allowed millions to rise from poverty, that alone would be enough for one lifetime. It will also remember him as a transformative Prime Minister. We who had the privilege of serving with him, remember him for something far, far rarer: his unflappable dignity. In a noisy democracy, he was a pool of stillness. He proved that one could be mild in manner, but made of steel in conviction, a truth best exemplified when he staked his government on the civil nuclear deal, securing India's place at the high table of the global powers," Tharoor said.
Tharoor also noted that Singh's Prime Ministerial tenure was about more than just high economic growth; it was about building the architecture of rights, including the Right to Information, the Right to Education, MGNREGA, the Right to Work, and the Right to Food Security.
"His decade as Prime Minister was not just about high growth, because that's something everyone talks about. It was also about the architecture of rights, the right to information, the right to education, Mandrega, the right to work, the right to food security. These were not just policies, they were the manifestations of a compassionate state, driven by a man who never forgot his own humble beginnings in Gah, in today's Pakistan. He once famously said, history will be kinder to me than the contemporary media. Standing here one year after his passing, sitting here one year after his passing, I can say with certainty, history has not just been kind, it has been validating. Dr Singh taught us that leadership is not about the volume of one's (voice, the decibel level, but the veracity of one's vision," he said.
Tharoor concluded by saying his tribute is not only to a former Prime Minister but also to a gentleman statesman who served India with integrity and dignity.
"That substance we will always be grateful for. This is why when I published my book, Our Living Constitution, a few months after his passing, I made it a point to dedicate the book in tribute to Dr Manmohan Singh and his memory. Today we pay tribute not just to a former Prime Minister we lost this day a year ago, but to a gentleman statesman who served India with his head held high and his hands clean," he added. (ANI)