THE GENTLEMAN-SCHOLAR PM

IN EVERY ROLE HE HELD, BE IT FINANCE MINISTER OR PRIME MINISTER, SINGH REMAINED OPEN-MINDED AND CONSTANTLY SOUGHT NEW IDEAS

- N.R. NARAYANA MURTHY

► I HAD KNOWN Manmohan Singh personally for quite some time even before he became the Finance Minister. He was a genuine friend and someone I admired much. One phrase that describes him aptly is "the most courteous, cultured and humble gentleman-scholar".

He was a picture of humility and a fountain of knowledge. He was extraordinarily accessible and decent. Sudha and I often visited his home with our children and family members. He was also, perhaps, the politician with the least ego I have ever met. Despite his seniority and rank, he remained equanimous and empathetic even when someone declined his requests.

When he was the Prime Minister, he wanted me to be the chairman of the Foreign Investment Commission that he wanted to set up to accelerate foreign direct investment. I respectfully declined it due to various reasons. He then requested my late friend, Ratan Tata, who accepted the position. I found that it was easy to disagree with Singh and yet remain friendly with him. His philosophy could be summed up by the much-practised Infosys tenet, "You can disagree with me as long as you are not disagreeable". He and I disagreed sometimes even when he was the PM. Yet, he was very kind and comfortable in us being able to express our differences of opinions honestly while still preserving our friendship.