Reformist leader, who was in step with history

Manmohan Singh leaves a legacy of bold economic reforms, and a leadership style marked by decency and grace.

- Ajit Ranade

Manmohan Singh leaves a legacy of bold economic reforms, and a leadership style marked by decency and grace. He will be remembered for many things, but it is the ordinary human qualities that stand out.

Two episodes are telling. As finance minister in the 1990s, he had to devalue the currency. He had just returned from Geneva having served as chief of the South Commission there. He calculated the rupee gain due to the drastic devaluation decision and donated it to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund.

Another story is from the time he fought the parliamentary elections and lost. He had taken a loan for his campaign expenses, which he returned to Khushwant Singh, much to the surprise and amusement of the latter. He had not expected a neta to return the borrowed money.

Singh's passing away is truly the end of an era. From humble beginnings, a Partition refugee, he rose to great eminence through sheer hard work and perseverance. His life ran parallel to the rise of India, from an impoverished and illiterate nation under British rule to becoming the fifth-largest economy in the world today.