The Accidental Prime Minister

by Sanjaya Baru

In 2004 Sanjaya Baru left a successful career as chief editor of the Financial Express to join Manmohan Singh as his media adviser. Singh and Baru had been close and Baru, a great admirer of the technocrat who had ushered in the 1991 reforms, saw this as an opportunity to help a man he admired lead India down a new path. As Singh’s ‘eyes and ears’ and self-appointed ‘conscience-keeper’, Baru saw the transformation of Manmohan Singh from technocrat to politician. In his account, he tells his story of what it was like to ‘manage’ public opinion for Singh and how their relationship unraveled, while giving us a riveting look at Indian politics as it happened behind the scenes. Capturing the heady early days of UPA-1 to the high noon of the nuclear deal, The Accidental Prime Minister is one of the most important and intimate accounts of the prime minister and UPA-1.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, India, History, Biography, Indian Literature, Memoir

301 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2014

About the author

Sanjaya Baru is an Indian political commentator and policy analyst, currently serving as Director for Geo-Economics and Strategy at the International Institute of Strategic Studies. Previously he had served as associate editor at The Economic Times and The Times of India, and then chief editor at Business Standard. His father B. P. R. Vithal served as Finance and Planning Secretary during former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's stint as Secretary of Finance. Before he became a journalist, he was a member of Communist Party of India (Marxist) when he was a student at University of Hyderabad. He became Manmohan Singh's media advisor and chief spokesperson, a role in which he served from May 2004 until August 2008. In April 2014, Penguin India published The Accidental Prime Minister, Baru's tell-all memoir about his time at the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). In it, Baru alleges that the prime minister was completely subservient to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, who wielded significant influence in the running of the Singh administration, including the PMO itself. The book has sparked off a controversy, with the PMO officially denouncing it as "fiction". Baru, however, has said that he set out to show an empathetic portrait of the prime minister.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Abhijit · Rating 3 out of 5]

Contrary to what others feel, my respect for Dr. Manmohan Singh which had reached its lowest point has been revived and has only increased.

While all the reviews say that this book says what was largely known, my review aims to tell the readers that why they should read this book.

Any book that you read teaches you something drawing from the life lessons and experiences of the writer. The Accidental Prime Minister.. does exactly that and between the lines you will find many takeaways whether you are salaried or an activist or a career politician. It tells you about the challenges faced by an honest man who was trying to climb a tree but had many opposing forces trying to pull him down or restrict his advance. It was Sonia Gandhi sometimes for many reasons, tall leaders of Congress Party who lost the race to the South Block to him, and many of his opponents. Yes, this book tells you what was largely known but the manner in which it gives you the first hand account proving what was known makes it a worthwhile read.

Within your family, your own job, and in your life you will come across situations which will be similar to what has been explained in the book. The beauty of this book is that it tells you what you should do and what you should not do, only if you read between the lines.

Manmohan Singh is an irony. An upright and honest man who happened to lead the most corrupt government our generation has ever seen. Or was he really the leader. He had a vision and he worked hard to achieve what he believed in. It's an irony of different proportion that he was given a pass for the good deeds, attributing it to Rahul baba while he bore the brunt of the failures and the scandals.

Readers, this is what politics is all about and while you might have an idea of the way the corridors of power functions, the book teaches you how to find your space in that crowded corridor. What goes on behind the scenes.

The way I see it, Dr. Manmohan Singh had two choices to make. The first one to claim his leadership as was done by P.V. Narsimha Rao and be easily forgotten as he was. The second that he meekly accepted was to resign to the centre of power that was Sonia. He new the powerful mechanism too well that did not even allow the cremation of P.V. Narsimha Rao to take place in Delhi.

I respect Dr. Manmohan Singh that despite all odds he managed to keep himself incorruptible among all the rotten apples. Or did he? After all financial incorruptibility alone does not define corruption.

Whatever be the verdict, don't read the book to arrive on a judgement on Manmohan. Read it to understand the politics of this counThe Accidental Prime Minister : The Making and Unmaking of Manmohan Singhtry and how political parties operate. It's definitely not like one big happy family out there. It's a house of cards after all and thanks to the book and it's author Sanjay Baru, he makes us privy to all of this.

Manmohan Singh trivia by Khushwant Singh...It was 1999 or thereabouts when Manmohan Singh was the South Delhi candidate for Look Sabha elections. Manmohan Singh visited Khushwant Singh asking for a loan of 2 lacs for election expenses. Khushwant Singh was happy to oblige him and handed him 2 lacs cash right away. Manmohan Singh thanked him and left assuring him that he would return the money to him. After the elections, Manmohan Singh promptly returned him the money, the same bank notes, saying he managed without incurring the expense he had planned.

I am sure the readers would acknowledge that such politicians don't exist today. He had high standards for himself and he definitely failed to establish that for other members of Congress Party. But that was not his prerogative. It was Sonia's and Rahul's and only they should be blamed for this. It wasn't the weakness of the Prime Minister but their willful inability to throw the bad apples from their pantry.

Do read the book to find out and form opinions of your own. I will be eager to hear from you.

@abhijit_sahayy
abhijitsahay1@gmail.com

[Vijai · Rating 5 out of 5]

I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar....
... I am to speak what I do know.
You all did love him once, not without cause:
What cause withholds you then, to mourn for him?
O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;
My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar

I am firmly of belief that a no better parallel came be drawn to this book than what Mark said about Caesar to the people of Rome about his death in Shakespeare's play. Mr. Singh, for reasons his own has maintained a stately silence in all this hullabaloo of election campaign rhetoric castrating him for alleged inaction and possibly the seed for this contempt was sown couple of years ago. As a keen political observer for me it was necessary to learn what Mr. Singh had to say for himself because no matter the personal limitations, the chair that is of the PM forces one to play the game which is why I had refused to believe the Mr. Singh did not have his reasons for whatever he did or did not do. This book tries throwing light on that aspect and does other things too.

Without leaking too much, let me tell you what the book does.

1. A holistic picture of Mr. Singh's UPA-1 tenure. The good, bad and the ugly have been given. The good being the nuclear deal and various things that happened in that context, a gripping read, I promise you. The bad, presents the scenarios where the PMO was more of a high school cat fight than the executive office we imagine it to be, I may be exaggerating but this part was fun. The ugly, Mr. Singh's silence playing into the hands of his detractors.

2. Stitches the role of media in the power play politics of India. You will find juicy tidbits that to me atleast were very entertaining.

3. Mr. Baru's role in the above two.

What this book does not do as the opposition and ruling party have wrongly accused Mr. Baru of is:

1. Show Mr. Singh in bad light. Very wrong, as Mr. Baru has done, IMO, a commendable job presenting a holistic picture.

2. Reveal the dual power center in UPA-1 (by extension UPA-2 too as well but he wasn't there then). Which he does but not as the central theme of the book. The theme is of Mr. Singh's UPA-1 tenure as seen from Mr. Baru's eyes.

Now, having said all that, I would be a fool to claim that Mr. Baru has not inserted an Easter egg or two in the book which when read in context and compared with other events will present something entirely different than what he has said. But then, that might be because I am just a conspiracy theorist and Mr. Baru may genuinely be the nice guy. Remember that Mark Antony's speech in the beginning of this review? he said something else too when the citizens of Rome go chasing after Cassius and Brutus.

Now let it work. Mischief, thou art afoot,
Take thou what course thou wilt!

Good book, well written and well presented. Perfect with an evening chai and pakora. Please buy first hand.


P.S - A good follow up will Tavleen Singh's Durbar. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

[Anil Swarup · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading the book one could easily come to the conclusion that the difference between UPA1 and UPA2 was the media advisor. Dr Singh (Manmohan Singh)was tutored, educated, built and defended by this media advisor during UPA1. Hence Dr Singh succeeded, as did UPA1 despite enormous shortcomings. The whole book is in poor taste. Perhaps the initial attempt was to project Dr Singh as a hero and the fall-guy but once Baru could not be brought on board again, he goes on to question his "hero" for harbouring survival instincts.
The book is so appropriately timed to make it a commercial success and to embarrass the embarrassed.
A lot of what has been mentioned could be true but intentions are questionable and grossly unethical, specially from a person who was trusted by Dr Singh. Knowing Dr Singh as well he did (or professes), Baru has put his "hero" in a spot. Instead of coming out in defence of Dr Singh, he has perhaps caused him the biggest embarrassment.
The book only reflects the "breaking news" culture. Sensational news impacts TRP ratings. This book pursues this dubious path...........making it enormously "successful"

[Ranjeev Dubey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who can afford to not read the biggest publishing phenomenon in India in the last decade? As if that was not enough, who can afford to not read the first of a whole genre of books that has not till now existed in India i.e. people who work with powerful politicians and then talk about it? For these reasons alone, you would want to check this book out no matter what the reviews say.

Having said that, here are my thoughts:

1. The books reads well. It should. The author is a senior journalist.

2. This is not a biography and not a authoritative examination of the Prime Ministerial career of Dr. Manmohan Singh. It is an account of what a prime minister's press secretary saw. On principle, that is limiting and therefore unsatisfactory.

2. The author did not serve the Prime Minister throughout his term. He wasn't there when Dr Manmohan Singh started to seriously decline and fall. Given the limitation the author has imposed on himself, he is unable to tell us exactly how this happened (though why finds a brief comment).

All in all, I am delighted the genre has made a beginning but disappointed at how modest it has turned out to be. So when we get down to discussing why this extraordinary man declined and fell, the reasons are still taken from the newspapers and not this book.

[Sujash Baid · Rating 5 out of 5]

A helpless Bheeshma of our times!

This book is the first of a kind which provides an insiders account to how things unfolded during the first tenure of the UPA government. it also throws light on the personality of Dr. Manmohan Singh and how he managed to run the coalition. This book is an account of how a good, wise and a learned man was put on the wrong side defending a disreputable lot. Manmohan Singh is the case of a person who has been stabbed time and again by his colleagues, by the fellow politicians of his party. This book to some extent has tried to capture the reasons behind the policy paralysis. also it is an account of how Manmohan Singh succumbed to the truth that the Centre of power was the party president and the government was answerable to the party!

[Hajarath Prasad Abburu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good and mostly accurate memoir of a journalist turned media advisor to the only Congress Prime Minister to serve two full terms hailing from a Non Nehru-Gandhi family.

It's a very tricky book to write considering how it isn't a swansong or even a work of hatred. The author was mostly balanced and tried to remain objective in judging the Prime Minister and others.

Good read for people who would like to read about the inner workings of South Block and who want to know more about the behind the scenes of Nuke deal.

[Mohd Saheel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gives an insight on the works and duties of a Prime minister and tells us how major decisions are taken by the authorities. I realised how hard is it for a government to formulate new policies considering the political compulsions and limitations of coalition parties. This book portrays Manmohan Singh as an honest intellectual politician who was highly devoted to the nation but lacked the political will power( particularly in UPA 2). The book also tells us about the various instances where MMS actually showed his political acumen like the nuclear deal. The last phase of the book deals with UPA 2 where the author alleged that the Gandhi family tightened the authority of PM and acted as a remote control with the aim of dumping MMS and projecting Rahul Gandhi as the potential PM candidate. Contrary to other opinions, my respect to Dr Singh increased after reading this book

[Amit Tyagi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sanjaya Baru needs to be praised for taking the bold (some may say, controversial)step of deciding to write this book. Our politicians and bureaucrats prefer to take the refuge of sensitive matters and official secrets in order to justify their decision of not coming out with their memoirs. But, this is precisely the kind of transparency that we need, of a view inside the corridors of power, who lobbies for whom, what motivates the various characters and so on.

Coming to the book, Sanjaya Baru deserves credit for the structure that he has given to the book. I guess, having been an editor for most of his professional career definitely helped. Also, despite claims in mainstream media to the contrary, the book is as pro-Mammohan Singh as it can get while retaining objectivity. Infact the book is very critical of the Congressis who nursed ambitions for the PM post and also Sonia Gandhi to an extent. What was more interesting for me, is how much of our foreign policy is influenced by the communal considerations of the so called secularists.

[S.Ach · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loads and loads of information, and many times, about unimportant events.
Tons of name droppings and glorification of one's own contributions.
Poor story-telling to hold the attention of the reader.
Deliberate shunning of controversial subjects.

I thought I would gain some insider's view in to the workings of one of the makers of Modern India ( I doubt if there are any critics of his 1991 economic reforms), who became a laughing stock as a lame-duck/puppet prime minister as the opposition labeled him towards the end of his tenure, but who himself firmly believed that history will be kinder to me than the media.
Disappointed.

[Girish · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Politics is about power and patronage, and ministerial positions are won not just on the basis of competence but also in recognition of a politician’s political clout or loyalty to the leader.”

A well written non-fiction can beat an average fiction any day! This is an impressive book that is objective in it's take of the UPA-1 Government under Dr.Manmohan Singh from it's ring side view of the PMO. More about the PM than the Government, more about the Government than the party. In a polarised country like ours, a book like this could be read as a manifestation of an agenda, but if you are fair to the author and the man, the books stands out as an important insight into coalition Government in the largest democracy of the world.

Dr.Manmohan Singh, one of the most qualified world leaders of his time, who already had done a major contribution as FM in 1991 through the liberalization of Indian economy, became an accidental prime minister. The context surrounding his election as the PM in the first term of UPA-1 was typical of the Great Indian Circus. Dubbed as a puppet PM by the opposition and popular media, the book explains through the various episodes how Mr.Singh was a leader with his own mind and how he was a shrewd political as well. The crowning achievement of the UPA-1 regime - The nuclear deal with US came after a lot of political chess.

Baru, the journalist, tries to do justice to the entire reporting by reserving judgements, but when he does pass them, it is filled with scorn. Sometimes it does distract you that he is trying to take credit for some major speech or for the PM agreeing to an idea - but then, who knows for sure? The biggest take away for me is the Governance of the country is more about managing the political push and pull and egos than informed decision making.

The criticism of the man too is a widely reported popular opinion backed by anecdotes. That even when the UPA-2 Government was reeling under scams, the integrity of the PM was never questioned was a double edged sword. The book is not a gossip machine for someone who is apolitical - though it could be viewed as revealing too much of what happens behind the haloed corridors of the PMO.

60% admiration 20% criticism and 20% of context setting. That is, no doubt, par for the course.

[Anashuya Kakati · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book gives a clear idea about how complex it is to run a government. There are so many participants, all precariously strung together, and contrary to public opinion 'the first among the equal' is not, in fact, the most powerful. Though Dr. Singh was more submissive than an usual PM, but I feel even a PM with a majority would have as many factions in his own party to keep happy.

For the common man, who demands changes in 100 days, this book is a MUST. Running a government is a mammoth task and we are too eager to rush to judgements. We love to portray our leaders in black or white, but in reality to run a successful government '50 shades of grey' are needed.

The intricate details that go into policy making is well enunciated by the author. e.g. The nuclear bill and Dr. Singh's struggle starting with the Americans to his own party members is an eye opener. The irony of a democracy is well spelt out by Dr. Baru about how the biggest blows a PM gets are from his own rather than from the opposition.

When I read this book the only image I could think of is that of Dr. Singh as the Greek hero Sisyphus rolling the big boulder up the hill only to watch it roll back down. The only thing I wonder is what made an erudite scholar like him roll the boulder for two terms? Was it ambition, or loyalty or just mere acceptance of fate?

The book is a love letter. Platonic might I add, but a love letter nevertheless written by a student for his much beloved 'Guru'. Dr. Baru tries very hard to be critical but the chapter 'Manmohan's Camelot' is written in earnest admiration and is not mere flattery.

Lastly, I wish Dr.Singh would also put pen to paper and leave his legacy behind. He said that 'Public office offers the opportunity to be educated at public expense'. Well Dr. Singh, public office also demands the education of the Public.

[Hrishikesh · Rating 3 out of 5]

An insider's story into what transpired during UPA-1.

It is no secret that Dr. Manmohan Singh was the accidental Prime Minister. Sanjay Baru was not just his media advisor, he was also a trusted confidant.

The book presents an hitherto unseen image of Dr. Singh. Personally speaking, it improved my image of Dr. Singh. It presents his political acumen - rather the fact that he had any political acumen at all. As Digvijay Singh once said - "I don't know if he's an over-rated economist; but I do know that he is an under-rated politician". It also shows his thinking and his attempts to run his government.

The reason why the Delhi Durbar is so upset at this book is not because it is critical of Dr. Singh - it is because (a) it presents Dr. Singh in a better light and (b) it is critical of Sonia Gandhi and her gang of sycophants. In my opinion the book has historical value, because it will be a strong bulwark against making Dr. Singh the fall-guy for the Congress' decimation in 2014. The book presents a simple story - the primary fault lies with Sonia and Rahul Gandhi.

All-in-all, Dr. Singh's role is beyond redemption. He has failed the nation, and there can be no two ways about it. The only silver linings are that (a) he tried a workable option in a bad fix; no one could have done better and that (b) if he had resigned, probably a worse person would have taken charge - that is how the Congress functions.

A lot of important lessons to be learnt from this book and a good insight into the Delhi durbars (although my favorite does remain Tavleen Singh's narrative). The perfect description of Dr. Singh is that provided by Baru himself - that of Bhishma.

[Santhosh Guru · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little laborious read, if you are following-up the politics of India for the last decade. It is laborious not because of the style of writing but the content. The entire book tries to say that Manmohan Singh is an honest, gentleman politician and an able economist, became a prime minister but could not wield his power because omnipotent Sonia controlling him and the government.

Manmohan Singh's vision on external affairs and relationship with Pakistan is really a key take away for me from this book. His vision that the borders cannot be changed and it can be made irrelevant is really an impressive thought and its a pity that he could put it in action because of various political reasons in India as well as Pakistan.

But apart from the above, all other things discussed in the book is nothing phenomenal. We knew that he was crippled by the coalition politics and his puppeteer was Sonia. This books goes in elaborate ways to corroborate this.

[Shashank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting account of the 'inner-workings' of the UPA1 government by a seasoned editor(little UPA2).Dr Singh,despite being the most 'qualified' politician in the world,struggled with the public perception of being a weak Prime Minister throughout his two terms.The book tells us why the perception was wrong and right.A must read for anyone interested in Indian politics.

[Prabhjot Kaur · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always heard about Dr. Manmohan Singh from my father and other older relatives how he was the best economist India had ever seen. Dr. Manmohan Singh came up with the idea of having an open economy. I have read a lot about Dr. Manmohan Singh much like the other Indians and yes everyone has always said that he was controlled by the Gandhi family that he was merely a puppet but the Gandhi family was pulling the strings. Of course I have heard these things from so many other Indians yet I never disliked Manmohan Singh.

This book tells how politics works. All the politicians have a scapegoat and Congress back then had Manmohan Singh. I know a lot of people loved this book and like me they all said that they all knew it, I believe this book disrespects Manmohan Singh.

Also, Sanjaya Baru wasn't even there for the whole term so obviously he doesn't know everything and a lot of it is speculation. People speculate about my life all the time. They don't even know all the facts but I always hear these things about myself that couldn't be far from truth but of course they think that they are right so I believe much of this book is speculation.

3 stars because the writing is good.

[Swateek · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the words of Dr. Manmohan Singh, "I honestly believe that history will be kinder to me than the contemporary media, or for that matter, the Opposition parties in Parliament..". And this cannot be more true. It so happens that the good work done by someone of his calibre is hidden away in the din of noises of useless media chatters and other sycophantic voices. Dr. Singh was and will always remain a charm for his his intellect, his humane persona, his gentle and civil conduct, his political instinct and his deep patriotism.

This book outlines well the rough journey he had to undertake in UPA-1 and a bit of his more turbulent journey during UPA-2. It takes through the milestones that Dr. Singh saw during his tenure and the hinderances in the path. Not being chronologically written makes it a bit of a non-reference text, but the inclusion of couplets and quotes in chapters make it interesting.

Looking forward to read more by Sanjaya Baru.

[Aruna Kumar Gadepalli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy and quick read.
The book contains 13 chapters excluding Introduction and Epilogue.
In the introduction the author announces various aspects like why he is writing the book what the books deals with and the what are the sources and the maintaining anonymity of the sources in case if anyone asked to do so. on the whole the book deals with various aspects beginning form the elections of 2004 and the UPA-1 to his leaving of office from PMO as the media adviser.

Why I started reading this book.
I was curious why the book got so much attention and why so much is talked about.
I did't find any points that are worthy of attention. What it contains already know but in the book authors puts down in print. Interesting narrative.

[Sudheendra Chaitanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

To those of us who have no inkling of what happens in the top corridors of government, how power is viewed from within, how decisions are taken, how human ambition meets the most important issues that face the country, this book is quite a revelation. It appears matter-of-fact. 'Look, this is how it is', kind of things.

That top decisions are never about morality or rightness, but they are the output of a few humans jostling for power and limelight, is another thing worth seeing.

We need to see more such books about the Indian political scene, some sort of a factual insider view.

[Sajith Kumar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Flash back to 2004!

Vajpayee is seeking reelection even when six months are still to go. The BJP is riding on a strong economy and the country’s new status as a nuclear weapons state. The party was confident to win the race with its new slogan “India Shining”. Pandits of history most of them are, but the BJP’s strategists forgot to factor in a crucial parameter of the country’s mindset into the equation. Indians feels embarrassed to celebrate any victory of their country. It eulogizes defeats of its sons against foreign invaders – the greatest being Porus against Alexander and Prithviraj Chauhan against Muhammed Ghauri. Every Indian knows of these two great defeats, but few remember the country’s resounding victory against Pakistan in the 1971 war. So, a society attuned to celebrate failure can’t be enthusiastic overnight about their raising clout. In spite of a sound fiscal policy, emergence as a regional superpower and corruption-free governance, the people voted BJP out of power. This put Congress, the main opposition party, in a quandary when they quite unexpectedly found themselves the winners. The party was dominated by the Nehru-Gandhi family, but its incumbent matriarch found herself morally constrained to assume the post of prime minister on account of her foreign origin. The search for a pliable, obedient alternative zeroed in on Manmohan Singh. Though a renowned economist and was once the country’s topmost financial administrator, Singh always wore loyalty to his master on the sleeve. Nobody thought of him in the role of prime minister, but precisely this self-effacement endeared him to Sonia Gandhi who wanted him to keep the chair warm for Rahul Gandhi. Singh himself acknowledged his ascent to Sonia and admitted that he was an ‘accidental prime minister’. Sanjaya Baru is a financial journalist who was Singh’s media adviser during his first term in office. His experience and observations while in the prime minister’s office is neatly catalogued in this excellent account of the four years he worked there.

Manmohan Singh’s unique combination of personal integrity, administrative experience and international stature was shared by none in the Congress party. Before becoming PM, he had occupied every important position in economic policy making in India. It was also the first time the party had to cobble up an alliance of other parties to get a grip on power. The UPA thus formed included the Left, which supported the government from the outside. Baru vividly recalls the helplessness of Singh even in such matters like selecting his ministerial colleagues and heads of statutory bodies like the Planning Commission. An example of appeasement of the Muslim community is narrated. Singh wanted to appoint Anu Aga who was the chairperson of Thermax as a member of the Planning Commission. Baru had obtained her concurrence, but the nomination never came. Eventually, Syeda Hameed was nominated, who was a Muslim, writer and social activist. The nuclear deal and improvement in relations with the US were put on hold on numerous occasions in fear of how the Muslim voters would react to them. Coming from an insider in the higher echelons of power, such revelations should shock us on account of the blatant sacrifice of national interest some politicians are willing to undertake to garner a few minority votes. The book also portrays petty squabbles between the high officials who control the destiny of the country over the kind of office room they occupy, the seating order and trivia such as the colour of the ink with which they sign!

This book caused much controversy at the time of publication on its exposing the pressures of Nehru-Gandhi family on the Prime Minister’s Office. Rahul Gandhi publicly derided the PM moments before he was to attend a crucial meeting of the nuclear treaty with the US. Baru has uncloaked Sonia Gandhi’s vengeful nature in her relations with former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao. His body was not cremated in Delhi in anticipation of having to build a memorial for him at the cremation site. The body was not even laid in state at Congress party’s headquarters and was hurriedly flown to Hyderabad where it was laid to rest. Sonia didn’t attend the cremation too. She repeated this petty trick when another former Prime Minister Chandra Sekhar died in 2007. She wanted his body to be taken to Haryana, but Sekhar’s son threatened to use a public crematorium if the government didn’t allow his father a deserving honour. Reluctantly, the party relented and allotted space for him on the banks of river Yamuna. This is all the more outrageous when we remember that all of the Nehru family – Jawaharlal, Indira, Rajiv and even the prodigal Sanjay – found a place for eternal rest in Delhi. As usual, Singh remained a mute spectator to the play being unfolded around him.

Sonia’s depredations on Singh’s administrative powers are elucidated in detail. He was not permitted to allocate portfolios to ministers. Moreover, he was forced to accommodate persons made notorious for their corrupt deals in the past, much against his will. Baru states that power was delegated, but authority was not and alleges that Sonia’s renunciation of power was more of a political tactic than a response to a higher calling (p.74). The chapter titled ‘Responsibility without Power’ narrates the sad plight of the PM in the face of machinations by the Nehru-Gandhi family. Credit for all the good work done by the government went to Sonia, while all the blame for any mistakes or failures invariably would go to Singh. The author terms this ‘governance without authority’ and goes on to add that though all coalition prime ministers found their power limited by political compulsions, none of them exercised as little power while taking on as much responsibility as Singh (p.103). In 2007, Rahul Gandhi claimed credit for extending the rural employment guarantee scheme to the entire country from just 200 of the most backward districts even though the prime minister had declared it a month earlier in a public meeting.

While many countries in the world follow a thirty-year rule by which classified documents will be made open to public scrutiny after a lapse of thirty years so that the nation can reexamine the parameters and outcomes of its decision-making mechanism. Singh openly supported introducing such a rule, but backed out in deference to the wishes of Congress’ First Family. This was because the dynasty-ruled Congress was worried about throwing light on the murky deals of the Nehru-Indira-Rajiv era. Singh was unwilling even to follow up on a suggestion of launching a fifty-year rule!

Singh’s greatest achievement is the civil nuclear energy deal made with the US. This was a continuation of the strategic dialogue initiated by Vajpayee with the US in 2004 called ‘Next Steps in Strategic Partnership’. But the Left, led by the hawkish Prakash Karat threw cold water on the entire scheme by threatening to withdraw support to the government. This was when the deal was in its final stages of drafting after many years of negotiations. Karat was driven more by his ambition to assert his authority in the party and its partisan ideology than national interests. Sonia advised Singh to go slow on the deal, clearly wanting to stay on in power, but he offered resignation than continuing in such a sorry state of affairs. Finally, the Left withdrew support, but the government was saved when Congress made a hastily concluded arrangement with Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party. This episode is a clear warning on the underhand deals of the backstabbing Left. Baru also brings to light the differences among its leadership. Sitaram Yechury wanted to support the deal, but couldn’t go against the command of Karat who was the general secretary of the party. In fact, Baru states that Yechury wanted CPM to join the ministry in 2004 and wanted to become the railway minister. All senior leaders like Jyoti Basu, Surjeet and Somnath Chatterjee supported the deal, but Karat’s opposition silenced them all.

Written in a lucid style, the book exhibits the power struggles that went on at the heart of the nation’s centre of authority. Boastful comments and self-promoting remarks are galore, but readers should condone the author for the genuine effort he has put in. A clear reason for his abrupt quitting of his post after four years in Singh’s first term is not given. Equally mysterious is his attempt to reenter after just one year when Singh had gained a thumping win in 2009. Altogether, the book is a must-read for getting a whiff of the extra-constitutional cliques that guided administrative decisions during Singh’s first term in office.

The book is highly recommended.

[Girish Shilamkar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book a must read for anyone interested in Indian politics.
Sanjay Baru tries to answer the question in the minds of millions of Indians, how Singh who was once hailed as King (after nuclear deal with US) reduced himself to an object of ridicule. Most of the book describes PM's work done during UPA-!. That is the period when Mr. Baru was PM's media adviser. And tries to guess why PM did not resign during UPA II.
Dr Singh's contribution of economic liberalisation (Mr. Rao played a bigger role here) and signing nuclear deal with US thus ending India's nuclear apartheid, will go down in history as key milestones in development of India. But the second term has tarnished his legacy for sure.
"Either you die hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain"

The degree to which Congress party will stoop to protect the Gandhis is nauseating and the book brings out this inherent deep rooted nature of the party. Hence "Gandhi mukt Congress" is better idea than "Congress mukt bharat" as we always need an national an opposition to keep a check on government.

[Vikas Datta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riveting account of happenings in the corridors of high powers, of turf battles, of a fractious opposition, of (some) double-dealing allies, or a party that failed to put its full support behind a man who accomplished much and could have risen to become one of India's greatest leaders had he been a little firmer in his second term... doesn't portray some leading lights of the party very well and that may account of their angry outbursts..

[Arunayan Sharma · Rating 3 out of 5]

The narrated events of first term of Dr Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister of India by author are somehow overrated and mixed up with his own personal information and experiences. The author wanted to project himself great and important personality in PM' life by this book.

[Manas Saloi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice book on the workings of the PMO.

[Abhijeet Aanand · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one had been on the list since long and much to my expectations, Sanjaya Baru does an excellent job in bringing out the statesman inside Dr. Manmohan Singh. This book has brought in a profound change in my opinion about Dr. Singh which was initially highly skewed due to his approach in his second term.

Most of the hardcore political analysts would hardly find anything substantial in the book but for those who are not acquainted with the scene going inside the corridors, this book would be an interesting read. Depicting the life of an outstanding academician turned policymaker and eventually, the Head of the Government of the largest democracy, the book provides interesting insights into his style of working and governance amidst an alternative power-center in the whole setup.

However, there should be an even bigger motivation for reading this book. Every writer tries to influence his readers by providing some lessons and viewpoints which can be applied in broader contexts based on his\her own experiences. The circumstances presented in the book can be very well applied in many broader contexts. What this book does so brilliantly is that at times, it provides you with alternatives and helps you to assess the merits and demerits of those alternatives but that's only possible if one is patient enough to ponder over certain developments which might go unnoticed in one go.

The author mentions that this book is an attempt to portray the stature of Dr. Singh in a positive light, yet he doesn't shy away from pointing certain imperfections in his character which made him defang particularly during his second term as a PM. The author does mention about his disastrous second term but the book seems primarily focussed on his first term when the author was the media advisor of the protagonist.

In short, highly recommended but don't go for it if you are expecting any sensational revelations.

[Amit Bagaria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having been the editor of India's top 3 financial newspapers and the author of an earlier book, Sanjaya Baru was no Accidental Author, like me, and has written this book very well, in simple, everyday language, unlike Dr Shashi Tharoor.

There is one major error in the book. Twice, he says that Indira Gandhi won the 1971 Lok Sabha elections on the back of (in the aftermath of) the victory in the 1971 Indo-Pak (or Bangladesh) War. The 1971 elections were held in arch, nine months before the War.

There is also a contradiction. First, the author says that Nehru won an improved majority in 1962. Several pages later, he says that Nehru won an improved majority in 1957. Surely, both years could not be correct — 1957 is correct.

The book shows a massive bias in favour of Dr Manmohan Singh, but then most political books (including three of mine) are bound to have such biases.

To say that India's entry into the newly created G20 was a tribute to Indian diplomacy in UPA-1 (Manmohan Singh's first term) is wrong, as the G20 started in 1999, much before UPA-1. In addition, as the world's second most populous country, largest democracy and 8th or 9th or 10th largest economy (at that time), it was but natural that India would be a part of a grouping of 19 powerful nations plus the EU. Did India deserve it any less than South Africa, Turkey, Argentina, Mexico or Indonesia?

More than a quarter of the book is dedicated to the Indo-US civil nuclear deal (the '123 Agreement') which is a bit of an overkill, as India has not seen any benefits of this deal even 12 years post-facto. The statement that the nuclear deal gave India the status of a world power is highly exaggerated.

[Sai · Rating 5 out of 5]

When it comes to India's former Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh, numerous number of doubts and questions float in the mind of people. Dr.Manmohan Singh has a stunning education background,vast experience as professor in top class universities and also in government agencies like planning commission . He was also a former reserve bank governor and has major role in rescuing India from inflation crisis in 1970s and balance of payment crisis in 1991. He was the major architect of liberalization in India, which boosted the path of Indian economy. With these feathers on his cap, Dr.Manmohan being judged just by his tenure as Prime Minister (especially UPA-2) without knowing him completely is something to feel pity. Is his Prime Minister tenure really a failure? Is Dr.Manmohan a dummy puppet? Does Sonia Gandhi exercise more power than him and control him? Many more such questions are answered in the book "The accidental Prime Minister" , where the author and media adviser of Manmohan from 2004-2008 Sanjaya Baru talks about the former Prime Minister in extensive way and answers many of our unanswered questions.

This book mostly talks about UPA-1, which is Dr.Manmohan's first tenure as Prime Minister and the various events surrounding the UPA-1. As the author Sanjaya Baru resigned from Prime Minister office in 2008, details about his tenure from 2009-2014 (UPA-2) is limited to the author's knowledge. Although both UPA-1 and UPA-2 are surrounded with controversies, they are very diminutive in UPA-1 compared to the latter. The author has exactly narrated the events that happened during his times in the Prime Minister office and also gives insights about the functioning of a Prime Minister office in general. The difficulty of being the Prime Minister of a country can be felt while reading the book. It is a common practice for Indians to criticize the top people in our government, without knowing about them thoroughly. As the structure of Prime Minister office itself is limited to the knowledge of a common citizen, criticizing the head of government without understanding the ground level situation is unfair. Someone can be criticized for their flaws but maligning someone for something they didn't do is completely unjust. Characterizing Dr.Manmohan Singh as powerless and his decisions are completely dominated by Sonia gandhi is only partially true as Dr.Manmohan was a man of his own on various issues and he is majorly responsible for UPA-1 becoming a success. This book mostly talks about the decisions taken by him, the decision which he was unable to take because of his limited powers and also about the denial of his legacy.

Author Sanjaya Baru portrays the true nature of Dr.Manmohan Singh and gives complete credit to his achievements. The limitations of power exercised by Dr.Manmohan Singh is clearly mentioned in his book. UPA-1 was the first congress-coalition government,where the congress government had coalition with Communists, whose ideology is completely different from INC. This is one of the vital reason for the limitation of powers of Dr.Manmohan Singh along with the demands of other coalition parties. As everyone knows, Sonia limited his powers but only to an extent as Dr.Manmohan was able to dominate her in few issues, which many are unaware and these issues are widely discussed in this back.

The department where Dr.Manmohan exercised complete authority and command is foreign policy and as a former Finance Minister and his experience in various countries, he got to know how the world dynamics is getting shaped up after globalization and his decisions to resolve Kashmir issues and sign nuclear deal with US are the clear examples. The greatest monumental achievement of Dr.Manmohan Singh in his tenure as Prime Minister is boosting the nuclear capabilities of India by signing the nuclear deal with US amidst various troubles. He was surrounded and charged from all sides in signing this deal and how he was able to confront these misfortunes and attain triumph defines the legacy of Dr.Manmohan Singh, which are unknown to many.

The book also talks about the relation of Dr.Manmohan Singh with some of his council of ministers and the events surrounding them. This gives detail about how some people in his own party are against him. This book also mentions about the weak speaking skills of Dr.Manmohan and how he was trained to be a better spokesperson. The author has clearly indicated both the strengths and weakness of Dr.Manmohan Singh in a balanced way. This book showcases how Dr.Manmohan Singh asks for needed advice without any hesitation and how he is hungry to learn more, especially about China.

Some of the personal conversations of the author Sanjaya Baru with Dr.Manmohan Singh are fascinating to read. The main motive of the book is to show the real image of Manmohan Singh and display it to people of India that Dr.Manmohan Singh is not complete;y dominated by Sonia Gandhi and also shows where her decisions influenced him and the areas where Dr.Manmohan had complete authority. All the chapters in the book were keen on showing the image of Dr.Manmohan Singh in a better limelight than the image registered in the minds of common citizens and concurrently this book also never fails to display the weakness of Dr.Manmohan Singh and highlighted whenever he went wrong.

Although all the chapters are concentrated on the above areas, the epilogue of the book came to be a hard hitting one and was hard on the UPA-2 government and reveals how UPA-2 became an epic failure. This book at the end creates a pitiful image on Dr.Manmohan Singh and generates anger on the people responsible for diminishing the extraordinary legacy of the extraordinary Dr.Manmohan Singh and altogether this book is an irresistible read for every Indian citizen to know the real face of Dr.Manmohan Singh, especially for political gores which will influence and increase their known political knowledge.

[MINAKSHI RAMJI · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I were to be honest, this book caught my eye in the airport bookstore only because of the controversy around the movie. But so glad that it did. I don't know why I was surprised because I am such a news/ information junkie -- but the book was in equal parts entertaining, exasperating, depressing, and hugely moving experience for me. Still waiting for Indian politics to inspire me I guess. Amazing picture of how things actually work in the corridors of power and a nuanced portrait of someone who I have no doubt history will show to be India's finest PM at least thus far.

I am surprised that the PM in question was offended by the book because he is portrayed in a largely sympathetic way and is even shown to be a wily politicians when it counts. It is not a glowing panegyric for sure to which perhaps culturally Indian leaders may be more accustomed. A must read in the end for anyone who follows Indian politics.

Finally, I was disappointed to see the continuing importance of caste in a book like this which of course continues to play a role in how alliances are formed even in the PMO as well as the significance of establishing one's "Indian" credentials. I suppose I am naive.

[Dinesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was always curious to know how such an intelligent and dignified economist ended up resorting to a humble and muted goodbye from politics, with not even a celebration of his contributions to India's growth. Sanjaya Baru writes about Manmohan Singh as an enigma - of how he shaped India's policies during UPA-1 and what he couldn't achieve through internal conflict and external pressures in UPA-2. The biggest eye opener for me was Dr. Singh's grit and resolve, even in the toughest of circumstances, to negotiate, converse and win over his critics. All in all, a super read if you're interested in Indian politics.

[Sravya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly entertaining and enjoyable read. The author's admirations and frustrations for our former PM got to me as well. Also provides an insight into the workings of the PMO.

[Himanshu Khurana · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Accidental Prime Minister is a much ‘discussed, debated, ridiculed and praised’ piece of authorship in large part because of the timing of its publication which was just before the 2014 General Elections and also due to its purported goal of rehabilitating the legacy and work of the former Prime Minister-the only one to have served two full five year terms after Nehru. The controversial nature of the book arises from the fact that it is one of the few committed attempts to investigate the nature of power sharing dynamics between Sonia Gandhi and Dr. Manmohan Singh which has been the subject of many debates, discussions, columns and nonetheless jokes and satire.

This book achieves an important objective of establishing the importance of the hard work and commitment of Dr. Singh. It refurbishes how he was committed to the cause of education by introducing scholarships for students, to the cause of employment by introducing the biggest employment guarantee program, to the cause of social welfare by developing and strengthening a variety of schemes and programs. Most importantly, how his legacy will be supreme and unchallenged in the sphere of foreign policy because irrespective of the success or failure of the civil nuclear cooperation agreement with the United States, he has got India rid of the ‘nuclear apartheid that the world had sought to impose on India.’ Baru crucially however brings out the importance of Dr. Singh’s ideas like ‘Making borders irrelevant’, strengthening economic and cultural links with ASEAN and East Asia and so on.

With regard to the relationship and sharing of power between Sonia Gandhi and Dr. Singh, it remains beyond any doubt that the real power lay with the party president and she controlled the levers from outside. It undoubtedly undermined the institution of the Prime Minister and the Dr. Singh will take it to his grave why he let this happen. Was it because of his lack of popular legitimacy or reluctance to confront the party and consolidate his position or willingness to succumb and yield under pressure or something else or infact some other factors which we might never know? One thing that emerges truly however is that Dr. Singh was not really a stooge as he was made out to be. True, he owed his position to Sonia and the party but he had a mind of his own and was willing even to stake his own position when the need really arose.

Dr. Singh’s own hope that history will judge him kindly can be understood from his response to the Parliament at the height of the nuclear deal debate when he aimed to assure the country that India will not surrender its sovereignty and strategic autonomy. He quotes Machiavelli’s The Prince, “It must be considered that there is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things. For the reformer has enemies in all those who profit by the old order and only lukewarm defenders in all those who would profit from the new order…” Thus he remained throughout his public life Machiavelli’s quintessential ‘Reformer’ who is attacked by adversaries zealously and defended by supporters only half-heartedly.

Despite the book’s goal to rehabilitate the legacy of Dr. Manmohan Singh the image appears either unclear or fogged because either Baru does not bring anything new into the debate or he credits his own influence over Dr. Singh of too much consequence . Further, the book in my view offers some theses which do not seem credible in the face of evidence and sometimes it also aims to settle personal scores as well. Lastly, the timing of publication of the book was a matter of much controversy and ridicule from many quarters. However I believe this is the area where Sanjaya Baru may be excused of any folly because publishers are driven by market dynamics and not so much by principles of morality and decency.

The book began with homage to celebrated and distinguished H.Y. Sharda Prasad who was Indira Gandhi’s information advisor for almost 16 years. According to Sharda Prasad, those who were once in power write memoirs because ‘it is a substitute for the authority they once commanded by virtue of their position but now miss.’ I think this forms the essence of why Mr. Baru decided to write this book. Though purportedly, it aims to rehabilitate former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and his legacy nonetheless it follows the same tune tending to establish Baru as a prime mover in the success of UPA-1. And the star of Dr. Singh tends to wane and wither with the outgoing of Sanjaya Baru along with a couple of other factors.