Chidambaram: Why no Bharat Ratna to Manmohan Singh | India News

NEW DELHI: Congress MP P Chidambaram on Monday, while participating in the discussion on the Union budget in Rajya Sabha, asked the govt why former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was not conferred the Bharat Ratna this Republic Day.
Praising Singh, who passed away on December 26, 2024, for his wisdom and farsightedness, the former home minister recalled how in 1991, when the country’s economy faced a grave crisis, “a man entered Parliament and North Block (where the finance ministry is headquartered).”
“He had an economic philosophy. He followed it with policies that required wisdom and farsightedness. Dr Manmohan Singh had it. I am urging the hon’ble finance minister to recapture the wisdom and farsightedness of Dr Manmohan Singh,” he said, in a message meant for Nirmala Sitharaman.
As he wound up his speech, Chidamabaram posed “one last question”. “This is through the finance minister to the govt. Why have you not conferred the Bharat Ratna on Dr Manmohan Singh?” he asked amid cheers from other members.
Singh later also came in for praise from Trinamool MP Sushmita Deb, who remembered him for his vision in 1991 to develop northeastern states as part of a ‘Look East’ approach, realising their potential as a gateway to east and southeast Asia.