The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Government at the Centre has decided to have a memorial for P.V. Narasimha Rao, who was the Prime Minister of the country from 1991 to 1996, and gave a push to the much needed economic reforms which were implemented by Dr. Manmohan Singh.
P. V. Narasimha Rao never expected to become the Prime Minister. A mature politician, a competent Parliamentarian, he was the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, moved to Delhi when the Congress Party wanted him to do so, held portfolios of Home, External Affairs and Human Resources Development, under Indira Gandhi as well as Rajiv Gandhi.
On the eve of the national elections in 1991, he fell ill and had a heart operation. However, during his convalescence, Narasimha Rao helped to draft the Congress manifesto. He did not contest in the elections, and the impression was that he would retire from politics and move to Andhra Pradesh.
When Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by a LTTE suicide bomber during the 1991 election, the Congress emerged as the largest single party. The party had to decide who would become the next Prime Minister. The prime contender was Sharad Pawar, but the Congress Party was apprehensive about his ambitions, and the speculation was that Narasimha Rao would be chosen as the Prime Ministerial candidate.
I chose to call on him when his name was announced. He looked frail and pale, and gave his answer in monosyllables. As I came out of his residence in Moti Lal Nehru Marg, I was wondering if P.V. Narasimha Rao had the energy to take on the job.
When his name was announced, almost magically, he was able to marshal his health within a couple of days. He was sworn in as Prime Minister on July 21, along with 59 members. Dr. Manmohan Singh became the Finance Minister and the rest of the council had their portfolios announced two days later.
I had gone to South Block to cover Narasimha Rao taking over as the Prime Minister. After meeting all the officers and sharing a cup of tea, he looked at me and told me to stay back. Alok Prasad of the Indian Foreign Service, who functioned as his secretary, ushered me into his room. Narasimha Rao told me that I will continue to be the Principal Information officer of the Government of India and will also be the Information Advisor to the Prime Minister.
Very soon followed the announcement of policies regarding the liberalisation of the economy. Subsidies were gradually reduced - except on the food front. The licence permit raj, as it was then known, was coming to an end. Chidambaram was the Commerce Minister to implement the policies from that end.
Soon, Narasimha Rao called a meeting of chief ministers, and told them that when the country had huge stockpiles of food, there was no reason for the poor to starve. He announced the food for work programme and asked the states to implement it.
His political status was strengthened following his election to the Lok Sabha from the Nandyala constituency in November by a massive majority. He also got a bill passed in the Parliament unanimously for maintaining the status quo as on 15 August 1947 of all places of worship in the country.
One day, during an informal interaction with the Prime Minister, I told him that some MPs told me that the liberalisation and the end of the licence permit raj will soon make them jobless. The MPs said they used to oblige people from their constituencies get their proposals cleared. He told me that he was thinking of initiating some measures for the MPs to help their constituencies. That eventually resulted in the MPLADS scheme, where each MP was allotted a certain amount which could be spent for development work in his or her constituency.
Narasimha Rao used to meet Sonia Gandhi regularly and kept her informed about the steps taken by his government. However, there was always a question mark about his relations with Mrs Sonia Gandhi. Sonia Gandhi at that time did not have the image of a potential leader of the Congress.
Narasimha Rao initially functioned after obtaining a consensus politically. He persuaded Atal Behari Vajpayee to be a member of the Indian delegation, along with Congress leader Salman Khurshid, at the Human Rights Commission in Geneva with great success. Earlier, he decided to establish a National Human Rights Commission, which made our case on human rights very strong in the international fora.
Narasimha Rao got the Parliament of India to pass a resolution declaring Jammu and Kashmir an integral part of India. That was one document which allayed doubts about the status of Jammu and Kashmir as an inalienable part of the Indian union. Moreover, he brought governor's rule to an end in the state by holding elections.
Once, during one of my interactions, I asked Narasimha Rao about his vision for the party and the country. He said he wanted to 're-establish' the Congress as a true national party with a solid democratic base. He said that the party had never had any elections since Mrs Indira Gandhi was forced to establish the Congress (I). All the appointments in the party, both at the Centre and the States since Indira Gandhi's time were nominated by the party high command.
Narasimha Rao initiated the process of elections to the party at the state levels. The process was to culminate at the national level at the Tirupati session of the Congress Party.
Those opposed to him in the Congress Party, started a campaign against him. The demolition of the Babri Masjid was a major event that put his government under pressure. Arjun Singh resigned from the government and Narasimha Rao came under pressure within the party.
Looking back, if Narasimha Rao was able to 're-establish' the Congress, the party would have had a different future. My close interaction with him as Principal Information Officer was for about a year. Thereafter, I superannuated and took over as the Advisor to the Jammu and Kashmir Government. I used to meet him in that capacity as well.
A couple of years before he passed away, he told me that the biggest misfortune of the Congress was the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. He said if Rajiv Gandhi had survived, he would have provided leadership to the party for another two decades.
A much misunderstood leader, Narasimha Rao deserves a memorial in the capital of the country.
Mr. I Ramamohan Rao is a former Principal Information Officer to the Government of India. He can be reached on his e-mail raoramamohan@gmail.
