The Accidental Prime Minister by Sanjaya Baru

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The Accidental Prime Minister by Sanjaya Baru

The Making and unmaking of Manmohan Singh

Book Review



Sanjaya Baru’s 2014 account entitled ‘The Accidental Prime Minister´ describes what he experienced in the UPA-1 when he was Manmohan Singh’s media adviser. Overall the book focuses on three aspects. Firstly, the book describes the events that transpired before Baru’s appointment as chief media adviser. Secondly, the book describes the political issues within the government and the Congress party. And, finally, the book narrates the way the former PM dealt with the foreign policy of the country.

Baru’s first series of interactions with Manmohan Singh were quite bitter. Being an editor of a leading newspaper, Baru strongly criticized Singh’s economic policies when the latter was an adviser. The misinterpretations of an interview that was later reported on the newspaper added fuel to the fire. It looked like Baru and Singh had become fierce rivals. However, the events that transpired later on proved beneficial when Manmohan Singh was appointed Prime Minister. He hired Baru as his media adviser and told him to be his mouthpiece in the media. This is what helped the author understand the mind of the Prime Minister even better.

Manmohan Singh was elected PM at a time when there were problems in the global economy. The author makes a mention that he had a part to play in Singh’s appointment. In an editorial article, the author had suggested Singh’s name as Prime Minister if the Congress Party won the general Elections. He felt that Singh was a rightful candidate to the post since Sonia Gandhi had other issues that hindered her progress to the same. However, once appointed into the PMO, the author realized the inner politics in the UPA-1. In the first year as Prime Minister, Dr. Singh had many enemies as they supported Sonia Gandhi’s decisions over his. He had limited powers in selecting the Cabinet ministers and in approving of various policies. This was one big concern in his first-term. However, he came to terms with this situation and along with the author he managed to bring about a balance between his allies and enemies. This was a great leadership skill that he possessed.

Over the course of his tenure, Manmohan Singh slowly took over the foreign policy of India. This proved beneficial for the country as it developed itself to be a nuclear powerhouse that would use nuclear energy for the citizens also. Taking charge of the foreign policy in India, Manmohan Singh worked with the then US-President George Bush to develop India in nuclear power resources. While it improved India-US relations, it also built up Manmohan Singh’s portfolio on the global scale. But, despite all the honors that he received, Dr. Singh’s image was tarnished by the various scams within the government that were revealed in his second term as Prime Minister.

‘The Accidental Prime Minister’ is a beautifully written book. It is not exactly a biography of the former Prime Minister but rather a detailed account from a secondary source. Sanjaya Baru has worked hard to create a glorious image of the Prime Minister but it often seems that he has written a book of self-praise. A reader could fall into the trap of thinking that it was the author who influenced all the decisions of the Prime Minister. As confessed by Baru, the book is not necessarily written in a chronological order but more into a thematic context. Taking different characteristics and events to form it into different chapters is really commendable. The book at times could seem a bit boring especially for those who have no knowledge of the history in the politics of independent India. Nevertheless, the book is still very captivating with various insights into the life of Manmohan Singh.

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