Mysorean

Our Hon. Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh gave his reply to the queries raised by the opposition and the Left on the nuclear deal with the US in the Rajya Sabha. It was not a reply, it was more of a speech. The speech had all the ingredients that a seasoned political speech writer would include. In fact, till I heard the speech I didn't realise the immense significance of this Nuclear Deal in the Indian Democracy. But what came out of the speech was something totally different for me - it was the emergence of Dr. Manmohan Singh, the shrewd politician.

The PM played all the cards he had in this speech. He started off by thanking all the members for raising queries so that the issues would come up for debate and get clarified too. He elaborated on the types of queries and answered them brilliantly. To read meaningful exceprts of the speech please click here. What stood out for me are the following statements:

• I did not seek Prime Ministership, it came to me and I have carried out my duties faithfully and will continue to do so. Infact, if you ask me, choosing Dr. Manmohan Singh for PM was the most sensible decision made by Sonia Gandhi. And after this speech, my opinion only got strengthened.
• I am the son of a Freedom Fighter who left his job to fight for the independence of this country. So, there is the blood of a freedom fighter that runs in me. I got those goosebumps on hearing those words. Even the PM choked on saying these words and paused to have a glass of water.
• I made it clear to Mr. Bush that the intervention in Iraq was a mistake. This statement told me that Dr. Singh is not a weak and spineless man. He has it in him to speak on behalf of the country whatever be his political pressures.
• When I introduced reforms during 1972-73, I was labeled a pawn in the hands of the US. Looking back, I wonder how India would have handled the Great Asian crisis . He was now taking the entire issue on his head. His capabilities are well known and from here on the entire house just listened. They were sold already.
• I was the Finance Secretary for the Atomic Energy Commission and I know what are the costs involved in the deals that we are involved in. He understands the domain of Nuclear Energy.
• There are risks involved in such deals. And I am willing to take such risks for the sake of the development of the country. He knew what he was doing.
• I will serve the country to the last ounce of my blood and nobody can take that right away from me. I didn't care about the speech anymore. I was deeply impressed by this man who is leading my country.

I am sold to the Nuclear Deal!

You can watch the video of the speech here.

And if you want to know more about our PM. Click here.