Pamulaparthi Venkata Narasimha Rao (28 June 1921 – 23 December 2004) was an Indian lawyer, statesman and politician who served as the 9th
prime minister of India
The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...
from 1991 to 1996. He is known for introducing various liberal reforms to India's economy. His ascendancy to the prime ministership was politically significant because he was the second holder of this office from a non-Hindi-speaking region and the first from
South India
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...
(
United Andhra Pradesh
United may refer to:
Places
* United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community
* United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
Arts and entertainment Films
* United (2003 film), ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film
* United (2011 film) ...
). He led an important administration, overseeing a major economic transformation and several home incidents affecting national security of India. Rao, who held the Industries portfolio, was personally responsible for the dismantling of the
Licence Raj
The Licence Raj or Permit Raj (''rāj'', meaning "rule" in Hindi) was the system of licences, regulations, and accompanying red tape, that hindered the set up and running of businesses in India between 1947 and 1990. Up to 80 government agenci ...
, as this came under the purview of the
Ministry of Commerce and Industry A Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry or variations is a ministry that is concerned with a nation's trade, industry and commerce.
Notable examples are:
List
*Algeria: Ministry of Industry and M ...
, reversing the economic policies of
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi (; 20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian politician who served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to beco ...
Daily News and Analysis
Publications established in 2005
Newspapers published in Mumbai
English-language newspapers published in India
Daily newspapers published in India
Essel Group
2005 establishments in Maharashtra ...
''. Future prime ministers
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Atal Bihari Vajpayee (; 25 December 1924 – 16 August 2018) was an Indian politician who served three terms as the 10th prime minister of India, first for a term of 13 days in 1996, then for a period of 13 months fr ...
and
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...
continued the economic reform policies pioneered by Rao's government. He employed Manmohan Singh as his
finance minister
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
to embark on historic economic transition. With Rao's mandate, Manmohan Singh launched India's
globalisation
Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...
angle of the reforms that implemented the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...
Chanakya
Chanakya (Sanskrit: चाणक्य; IAST: ', ; 375–283 BCE) was an ancient Indian polymath who was active as a teacher, author, strategist, philosopher, economist, jurist, and royal advisor. He is traditionally identified as Kauṭilya o ...
'' for his ability to steer economic and political legislation through the parliament at a time when he headed a
minority government
A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...
.
11th
president of India
The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu ...
APJ Abdul Kalam
Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (; 15 October 193127 July 2015) was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007. He was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu and studied phy ...
described Rao as a "patriotic statesman who believed that the nation is bigger than the political system". Kalam acknowledged that Rao, had in fact, asked him to get ready for testing nuclear weapons in 1996, but they were not carried out, due to the change of government pursuant to the
1996 Indian general election
File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
. The Vajpayee-led
NDA
NDA may stand for:
Military
* National Defence Academy (India), a military academy in India
* National Defence Act, legislation for organizing and funding Canada's military
* National Defense Academy of Japan, a military academy in Japan
* Nig ...
government later conducted the nuclear tests in 1998. It emerged later, that Rao had briefed Vajpayee on the state of readiness for nuclear tests, paving the way for this decision.
Rao's term as prime minister was an eventful one in India's history. Besides marking a paradigm shift from the industrialising, mixed economic model of
Jawaharlal Nehru
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat—
*
*
*
* and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...
to a market driven one, his years as prime minister also saw the emergence of the
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...
(BJP), a major right-wing party, as an alternative to the
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
which had been governing India for most of its post-independence history.
Rao died in 2004 of a heart attack in New Delhi. He was cremated in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
. He was a versatile thinker with interests in a variety of subjects (other than politics) such as literature and computer software (including
computer programming
Computer programming is the process of performing a particular computation (or more generally, accomplishing a specific computing result), usually by designing and building an executable computer program. Programming involves tasks such as ana ...
). He spoke 17 languages.
Although heavily criticised during his tenure and even sidelined later by his own party, retrospective evaluations have been kinder, even positioning him as one of the best prime ministers of India in various polls and analyses. His achievements include steering India through the 1991 economic crisis, completing a tenure with a
minority government
A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...
insurgency in Punjab
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Insurgency in Punjab
, image = Punjab in India (claimed and disputed hatched).svg
, caption = Affected areas coloured in Red
, image_size = 300px
, date ...
, tough policy against
terrorism in Kashmir
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
Telugu Brahmin
Telugu Brahmins are Brahmin communities native to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
History Origin theories
According to the ''Aitareya Brahmana'' of the Rigveda, the Andhras left north India from the banks of the River Yamuna a ...
Narsampet
Narsampet is a town in Warangal district of the Indian state of Telangana.
Narsampet is a Mandal in Warangal Rural District of Telangana State, India. Headquarters of Narsampet Revenue Division is in Narsampet Town. As part of Telangana Districts ...
mandal,
Warangal district
Warangal district, formerly Warangal Rural district, is a district in the Indian state of Telangana. The district shares boundaries with Mahabubabad, Jangaon, Hanamkonda, Mulugu and Bhupalpally districts.
As of June 2021, Hanamkonda tentativ ...
of present-day
Telangana
Telangana (; , ) is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India b ...
(then part of
Hyderabad State
Hyderabad State () was a princely state located in the south-central Deccan region of India with its capital at the city of Hyderabad. It is now divided into the present-day state of Telangana, the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka, and t ...
). His father Sitarama Rao and mother Rukma Bai hailed from agrarian families. Later he was adopted by Pamulaparthi Ranga Rao and Rukminamma and brought to Vangara, a village in Bheemadevarpalle mandal of present-day
Hanamkonda district
Hanumakonda district, (formerly Warangal Urban district) is a district located in the northern region of the Indian state of Telangana. The district headquarters are located at Hanumakonda. The district borders the districts of Jangaon, Karimna ...
in Telangana when he was three years old. Popularly known as P. V., he completed part of his primary education in Katkuru village of Bheemdevarapalli mandal in
Hanamkonda district
Hanumakonda district, (formerly Warangal Urban district) is a district located in the northern region of the Indian state of Telangana. The district headquarters are located at Hanumakonda. The district borders the districts of Jangaon, Karimna ...
by staying in his relative Gabbeta Radhakishan Rao's house and studying for his
bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
in the Arts college at the
Osmania University
Osmania University is a collegiate public state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad in 1918 , He released a farman to establish OSMANIA UNIVERSITY on the day of 28 August 1918. It ...
. P. V. Narasimha Rao was part of Vande Mataram movement in the late 1930s in the Hyderabad State. He later went on to
Hislop College
Hislop is an English, Scottish and Irish name in origin. The name belongs to the class of topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches or types of trees. It derives from Old ...
, now under
Nagpur University
Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University (RTMNU), formerly Nagpur University, is a Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Nagpur, Maharashtra. It is one of India's oldest universities, as well as th ...
, where he completed a master's degree in law. He completed his law from Fergusson College in Pune of the University of Bombay (now Mumbai).
Along with his distant cousin Pamulaparthi Sadasiva Rao, Ch. Raja Narendra and Devulapalli Damodar Rao, P. V. edited a Telugu weekly magazine called ''Kakatiya Patrika'' in the 1940s. Both P. V. and Sadasiva Rao contributed articles under the pen-name ''Jaya-Vijaya''. He served as the Chairman of the Telugu Academy in Andhra Pradesh from 1968 to 1974.
Political career
Rao was an active freedom fighter during the
Indian Independence movement
The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947.
The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...
and joined full-time politics after independence as a member of the
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
. He served as an elected representative for Andhra Pradesh State Assembly from 1957 to 1977. He served in various ministerial positions in Andhra government from 1962 to 1973. He became the
Chief minister of Andhra Pradesh
The chief minister of Andhra Pradesh is the chief executive of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chi ...
in 1971 and implemented land reforms and land ceiling acts strictly. He secured reservation for lower castes in politics during his tenure. President's rule had to be imposed to counter the
Jai Andhra movement
Jai Andhra movement is a 1972 political movement in support for the creation of Andhra state in the light of injustices felt by the people of the Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema Regions. This was after the HC and SC upheld the Mulki rules in exist ...
during his tenure.
He supported
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 ...
in formation of New Congress party in 1969 by splitting the Indian National Congress. This was later regrouped as Congress (I) party in 1978. He served as Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha from Andhra Pradesh. He rose to national prominence for handling several diverse portfolios, most significantly
Home
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...
,
Defence
Defense or defence may refer to:
Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups
* Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare
* Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks
* Defense industr ...
and
Foreign Affairs
''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership organization and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and ...
, in the cabinets of both Indira Gandhi and
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi (; 20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian politician who served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to beco ...
. He served as Foreign minister from 1980 to 1984 and then from 1988 to 1989. In fact, it is speculated that he was in the running for the post of India's President along with
Zail Singh
Giani Zail Singh (, born Jarnail Singh; 5 May 1916 – 25 December 1994) was an Indian politician from Punjab who served as the seventh president of India from 1982 to 1987. He was the first Sikh and the first person from a backward caste to bec ...
in 1982.
Rao very nearly retired from politics in 1991. It was the assassination of the Congress President Rajiv Gandhi that persuaded him to make a comeback. As the Congress had won the largest number of seats in the 1991 elections, he had an opportunity to head the
minority government
A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...
as Prime Minister. He was the first person outside the
Nehru–Gandhi family
The Nehru–Gandhi family is an Indian political family that has occupied a prominent place in the politics of India. The involvement of the family has traditionally revolved around the Indian National Congress, as various members have traditio ...
to serve as
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
for five continuous years, the first to hail from the State of
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
, and also the first from
Southern India
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the States and union territories of India, Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and T ...
. Since Rao had not contested the general elections, he then participated in a by-election in
Nandyal
Nandyal is a city and District headquarters of Nandyal district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the headquarters of Nandyal mandal in Nandyal revenue division.
Demographics
In the 2011 census of India, Nandyal ...
to join the parliament. Rao won from Nandyal with a victory margin of a record 5 lakh (500,000) votes and his win was recorded in the
Guinness Book Of World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
; later on, in 1996, he was MP from Berhampur, Ganjam District, Odisha. His cabinet included
Sharad Pawar
Sharad Govindrao Pawar (Marathi pronunciation: əɾəd̪ pəʋaːɾ born 12 December 1940) is an Indian politician. He has served as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra on four occasions. He has held the posts of Minister of Defence and Minist ...
, himself a strong contender for the Prime Minister's post, as
Defence Minister
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...
. He also broke a convention by appointing a non-political economist and future prime minister,
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...
as his
Finance Minister
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
. He also appointed
Subramanian Swamy
Subramanian Swamy (born 15 September 1939) is an Indian politician, economist and statistician. Before joining politics, he was a professor of Mathematical Economics at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. He is known for his Hindu na ...
, an opposition party member as the Chairman of the Commission on Labour Standards and International Trade. This has been the only instance that an opposition party member was given a Cabinet rank post by the ruling party. He also sent opposition leader
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Atal Bihari Vajpayee (; 25 December 1924 – 16 August 2018) was an Indian politician who served three terms as the 10th prime minister of India, first for a term of 13 days in 1996, then for a period of 13 months fr ...
, to represent India in a UN meeting at Geneva.
Narasimha Rao fought and won elections from different parts of India such as
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
, Maharashtra and
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
capital markets
A capital market is a financial market in which long-term debt (over a year) or equity-backed securities are bought and sold, in contrast to a money market where short-term debt is bought and sold. Capital markets channel the wealth of savers to ...
, deregulating domestic business, and reforming the trade regime. Rao's government's goals were reducing the
fiscal deficit
The government budget balance, also alternatively referred to as general government balance, public budget balance, or public fiscal balance, is the overall difference between government revenues and spending. A positive balance is called a ''g ...
,
privatisation
Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
of the public sector and increasing investment in infrastructure. Trade reforms and changes in the regulation of
foreign direct investment
A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from a foreign portfolio investment by a notion of direct co ...
were introduced to open India to foreign trade while stabilising external loans. Rao wanted I. G. Patel as his
Finance Minister
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
.Time To Tune In To FM . Indiatoday.com (25 February 2002). Retrieved 10 July 2012. Patel was an official who helped prepare 14 budgets, an ex-governor of the
Reserve Bank of India
The Reserve Bank of India, chiefly known as RBI, is India's central bank and regulatory body responsible for regulation of the Indian banking system. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Finance, Government of India. It is responsible for ...
and had headed
The London School of Economics
, mottoeng = To understand the causes of things
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £240.8 million (2021)
, budget = £391.1 millio ...
. But Patel declined. Rao then chose
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...
for the job. Manmohan Singh, an acclaimed economist, played a central role in implementing these reforms.
Major reforms in India's capital markets led to an influx of foreign portfolio investment. The major economic policies adopted by Rao include:
*Abolishing in 1992 the Controller of Capital Issues which decided the prices and number of shares that firms could issue.
*Introducing the SEBI Act of 1992 and the Security Laws (Amendment) which gave
SEBI
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is the regulatory body for securities and commodity market in India under the ownership of Ministry of Finance within the Government of India. It was established on 12 April 1988 as an executive ...
the legal authority to register and regulate all security market intermediaries.
*Opening up in 1992 of India's
equity markets
A stock market, equity market, or share market is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of stocks (also called shares), which represent ownership claims on businesses; these may include ''securities'' listed on a public stock exchange, as ...
to investment by foreign institutional investors and permitting Indian firms to raise capital on international markets by issuing
Global Depository Receipt
A global depository receipt (GDR and sometimes spelled ''depositary'') is a general name for a depositary receipt where a certificate issued by a depository bank, which purchases shares of foreign companies, creates a security on a local exchan ...
s (GDRs).
*Starting in 1994 of the National Stock Exchange as a computer-based trading system which served as an instrument to leverage reforms of India's other stock exchanges. The NSE emerged as India's largest exchange by 1996.
*Reducing tariffs from an average of 85 per cent to 25 per cent, and rolling back quantitative controls. (The rupee was made convertible on trade account.)
*Encouraging foreign direct investment by increasing the maximum limit on share of foreign capital in joint ventures from 40 to 51% with 100% foreign equity permitted in priority sectors.Ajay Singh and Arjuna Ranawana India. Conflict of Interest. Local industrialists issue a broadside against multinationals ''
Asiaweek
''Asiaweek'' was an English-language news magazine focusing on Asia, published weekly by Asiaweek Limited, a subsidiary of Time Inc. Based in Hong Kong, it was established in 1975, and ceased publication with its 7 December 2001 issue due to a " ...
''. Retrieved 2 March 2007.
*Streamlining procedures for FDI approvals, and in at least 35 industries, automatically approving projects within the limits for foreign participation.
The impact of these reforms may be gauged from the fact that total foreign investment (including foreign direct investment, portfolio investment, and investment raised on international capital markets) in India grew from a minuscule US$132 million in 1991–92 to $5.3 billion in 1995–96. Rao began industrial policy reforms with the manufacturing sector. He slashed industrial
licensing
A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit).
A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
, leaving only 18 industries subject to licensing. Industrial regulation was rationalised.
National security, foreign policy and crisis management
Rao energised the national
nuclear security
Nuclear safety is defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as "The achievement of proper operating conditions, prevention of accidents or mitigation of accident consequences, resulting in protection of workers, the public and the ...
and
ballistic missiles
A ballistic missile is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are guided only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles stay within the ...
programme, which ultimately resulted in the 1998 Pokhran nuclear tests. It is speculated that the tests were actually planned in 1995, during Rao's term in office,Narasimha Rao and the bomb Retrieved 2 March 2007. and that they were dropped under American pressure when the US intelligence got the whiff of it. Another view was that he purposefully leaked the information to gain time to develop and test thermonuclear device which was not yet ready. He increased military spending, and set the
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...
on course to fight the emerging threat of terrorism and insurgencies, as well as Pakistan and China's nuclear potentials. It was during his term that khalistani terrorism in the Indian state of
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
was finally defeated. Also scenarios of
aircraft hijacking
Aircraft hijacking (also known as airplane hijacking, skyjacking, plane hijacking, plane jacking, air robbery, air piracy, or aircraft piracy, with the last term used within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States) is the unlawfu ...
s, which occurred during Rao's time ended without the government conceding the terrorists' demands. He also directed negotiations to secure the release of Doraiswamy, an
Indian Oil
Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL; d/b/a IndianOil) is a central public sector undertaking under the ownership of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India. It is headquartered in New Delhi. It is a public sector under ...
executive, from
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to:
* People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir
* Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley
* Kashmiri language, their language
People with the name
* Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...
terrorists who kidnapped him, and Liviu Radu, a Romanian diplomat posted in New Delhi in October 1991, who was kidnapped by Sikh terrorists. Rao also handled the Indian response to the occupation of the
Hazratbal
Hazratbal is the notified area situated in Srinagar district of Jammu and Kashmir. It is about from Srinagar city center. The early settlements in the area occurred on the banks of Dal Lake and majority of population of area are Hangis (fis ...
holy shrine in Jammu and Kashmir by terrorists in October 1993. He brought the occupation to an end without damage to the shrine. Similarly, he dealt with the kidnapping of some foreign tourists by a terrorist group called ''Al Faran'' in Kashmir valley in 1995 effectively. Although he could not secure the release of the hostages, his policies ensured that the terrorists demands were not conceded to, and that the action of the terrorists was condemned internationally, including Pakistan.
Rao also made diplomatic overtures to Western Europe, the United States, and China. He decided in 1992 to bring into the open India's relations with Israel, which had been kept covertly active for a few years during his tenure as a Foreign Minister, and permitted Israel to open an embassy in New Delhi. He ordered the intelligence community in 1992 to start a systematic drive to draw the international community's attention to Pakistan's sponsorship of terrorism against India and not to be discouraged by US efforts to undermine the exercise. Rao launched the '' Look East'' foreign policy, which brought India closer to
ASEAN
ASEAN ( , ), officially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia, which promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, security, militar ...
. According to
Rejaul Karim Laskar
Rejaul Karim Laskar is an Indian politician from the state of Assam belonging to the Indian National Congress. He is a Congress ideologue and has written extensively on the policies of the United Progressive Alliance governments. He is also a p ...
, a scholar of India's foreign policy and ideologue of Rao's Congress Party, Rao initiated the Look East policy with three objectives in mind, namely, to renew political contacts with the ASEAN-member nation; to increase economic interaction with South East Asia in trade, investment, science and technology, tourism, etc.; and to forge strategic and defence links with several countries of South East Asia. He decided to maintain a distance from the
Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...
in order to avoid aggravating Beijing's suspicions and concerns, and made successful overtures to
Tehran
Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
. The 'cultivate
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
' policy was pushed through vigorously by him. These policies paid rich dividends for India in March 1994, when
Benazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
's efforts to have a resolution passed by the
UN Human Rights Commission
The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a subsidiary body of t ...
in Geneva on the human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir failed, with opposition by China and Iran.
Rao's crisis management after 12 March
1993 Bombay bombings
The 1993 Bombay bombings were a series of 12 terrorist bombings that took place in Bombay, Maharashtra, on 12 March 1993. The single-day attacks resulted in 257 fatalities and 1,400 injuries. The attacks were coordinated by Dawood Ibrahim, le ...
was highly praised. He personally visited Bombay after the blasts and after seeing evidence of Pakistani involvement in the blasts, ordered the intelligence community to invite the intelligence agencies of the US, UK and other West European countries to send their counter-terrorism experts to Bombay to examine the facts for themselves.
Economic crisis and initiation of liberalisation
Rao decided that India, which in 1991 was on the brink of bankruptcy, would benefit from liberalising its economy. He appointed economist Manmohan Singh, a former governor of the
Reserve Bank of India
The Reserve Bank of India, chiefly known as RBI, is India's central bank and regulatory body responsible for regulation of the Indian banking system. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Finance, Government of India. It is responsible for ...
, as
Finance Minister
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
to accomplish his goals. This liberalisation was criticised by many socialist nationalists at that time.
He is often referred as 'Father of Indian Economic Reforms'. PV Narasimha Rao: The 10th Prime Minister who changed the face of Indian economy under Rao's mandate and leadership, then finance minister Manmohan Singh launched a series of pro-globalisation reforms, including International Monetary Fund (IMF) policies, to rescue the almost-bankrupt nation from economic collapse.
Father of Indian nuclear programme
Kalam recalls that Rao ordered him not to test, since "the election result was quite different from what he anticipated". The BJP's Atal Bihari Vajpayee took over as prime minister on 16 May 1996. Narasimha Rao, Abdul Kalam and R Chidambaram went to meet the new prime minister "so that", in Kalam's telling, "the smooth takeover of such a very important programme can take place".
Rao knew he had only one chance to test before sanctions kicked in, i.e., he could not both test conventional atomic bombs in December 1995 as well as the hydrogen bomb separately in April 1996. As Shekhar Gupta – who has had unprecedented access to Rao as well as the nuclear team – speculates: "By late 1995, Rao's scientists told him that they needed six more months. They could test some weapons but not others...thermonuclear etc. So Rao began a charade of taking preliminary steps to test, without intending to test then."
National elections were scheduled for May 1996, and Rao spent the next two months campaigning. On 8 May at 21:00, Abdul Kalam was asked to immediately meet with the prime minister. Rao told him, "Kalam, be ready with the Department of Atomic Energy and your team for the N-test and I am going to Tirupati. You wait for my authorisation to go ahead with the test. DRDO-DAE teams must be ready for action."
Rao energised the national nuclear security and ballistic missiles programme. His efforts resulted in the 1998 Pokhran nuclear tests.
Rao was the "true father" of India's nuclear programme. Vajpayee said that, in May 1996, a few days after he had succeeded Rao as prime minister, "Rao told me that the bomb was ready. I only exploded it."
"Saamagri tayyar hai," Rao had said. ("The ingredients are ready.") "You can go ahead."
The conventional narrative at the time was that prime minister Rao had wanted to test nuclear weapons in December 1995. The Americans had caught on, and Rao had dithered – as was his wont. Three years later, prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee fulfilled his party's campaign promise by ordering five nuclear tests below the shimmering sands of Rajasthan.
Handling of separatist movements
Rao successfully decimated the Sikh separatist movement and neutralised Kashmiri separatist movement to cetain extent. It is said that Rao was 'solely responsible' for the decision to hold elections in Punjab, no matter how narrow the electorate base would be. In dealing with Kashmir Rao's government was highly restrained by US government and its president Bill Clinton. Rao's government introduced the
Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act
Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, commonly known as TADA, was an Indian anti-terrorism law which was in force between 1985 and 1995 (modified in 1987) under the background of the Punjab insurgency and was applied to whole of ...
(TADA), India's first anti-terrorism legislation, and directed the Indian Army to eliminate the infiltrators from Pakistan.Meredith Weiss (25 June 2002). . yale.edu. Despite a heavy and largely successful Army campaign, Pakistani Media accuses that the state descended into a security nightmare. Tourism and commerce were also largely disrupted.
Babri Mosque riots
In the late 1980s, the
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...
(BJP) brought the
Ram Janmabhoomi
Ram Janmabhoomi (literally, "Rama's birthplace") is the site that is hypothesized to be the birthplace of Rama, believed to be the seventh avatar of the Hindu deity Vishnu. The Ramayana states that the location of Rama's birthplace is on the ...
issue to the centre stage of national politics, and the BJP and VHP began organising larger protests in Ayodhya and around the country.
Members of the
Vishva Hindu Parishad
The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) () is an Indian right-wing Hindu organization based on Hindu nationalism. The VHP was founded in 1964 by M. S. Golwalkar and S. S. Apte in collaboration with Swami Chinmayananda. Its stated objective is "to ...
(VHP) demolished the
Babri Mosque
Babri Masjid (IAST: Bābarī Masjid; meaning ''Mosque of Babur'') was a mosque in Ayodhya, India, at a site believed by many Hindus to be the birthplace of Hindu deity Rama. It has been a Ayodhya dispute, focus of dispute between the Hindu an ...
(which was constructed by Mir Baqi, a general of India's first Mughal Emperor, Babur) in
Ayodhya
Ayodhya (; ) is a city situated on the banks of holy river Saryu in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
Ayodhya, also known as Sāketa, Saketa, is an ancient city of India, the birthplace of Rama and ...
on 6 December 1992. The site is believed to be the birthplace of the Hindu god
Rama
Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...
. The destruction of the disputed structure, which was widely reported in the international media, unleashed large scale communal violence, the most extensive since the
Partition of India
The Partition of British India in 1947 was the Partition (politics), change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: ...
. Hindus and Muslims were indulged in massive rioting across the country, and almost every major city including Delhi, Mumbai,
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
,
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...
,
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
,
Bhopal
Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...
struggled to control the unrest.
Later
Liberhan Commission
The Liberhan Commission (officially Liberhan Ayodhya Commission of Inquiry) was a long-running inquiry commissioned by the Government of India to investigate the destruction of the disputed structure Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992. Led by reti ...
, after extensive hearing and investigation, exonerated P. V. Narasimha Rao. It pointed out that Rao was heading a minority government, the Commission accepted the centre's submission that central forces could neither be deployed by the Union in the totality of facts and circumstances then prevailing, nor could President's Rule be imposed "on the basis of rumours or media reports". Taking such a step would have created "bad precedent" damaging the federal structure and would have "amounted to interference" in the state administration, it said. The state "deliberately and consciously understated" the risk to the disputed structure and general law and order. It also said that the Governor's assessment of the situation was either badly flawed or overly optimistic and was thus a major impediment for the central government. The Commission further said, "... knowing fully well that its facetious undertakings before the Supreme Court had bought it sufficient breathing space, it (state government) proceeded with the planning for the destruction of the disputed structure. The Supreme Court's own observer failed to alert it to the sinister undercurrents. The Governor and its intelligence agencies, charged with acting as the eyes and ears of the central government also failed in their task. Without substantive procedural prerequisites, neither the Supreme Court, nor the Union of India was able to take any meaningful steps."
In yet another discussion with journalist
Shekhar Gupta
Shekhar Gupta (born 26 August 1957) is an Indian journalist and author. He is the founder and the current editor-in-chief of ''ThePrint''. He is also a columnist for the ''Business Standard'' and pens a weekly column which appears every Saturda ...
, Rao answered several of the questions on the demolition. He said he was wary of the impact of hundreds of deaths on the nation, and it could have been far worse. And also he had to consider the scenario in which some of the troops might have turned around and joined the mobs instead. Regarding dismissal of Kalyan Singh (government), he said, "mere dismissal does not mean you can take control. It takes a day or so appointing advisers, sending them to Lucknow, taking control of the state. Meanwhile, what had to happen would have happened and there would have been no Kalyan Singh to blame either."
Latur earthquake
In 1993, a strong earthquake in Latur, Maharashtra killed nearly 10,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands. Rao was applauded by many for using modern technology and resources to organise major relief operations to assuage the stricken people, and for schemes of
economic reconstruction
Economic reconstruction is a process for creating a proactive vision of economic change. The most basic idea is that problems in the economy, such as deindustrialization, environmental decay, outsourcing, industrial incompetence, poverty and ad ...
.
Purulia arms drop case
Narasimha Rao was charged for his facilitating safe exit of accused of 1995 Purulia arms drop case. Although, it was never proved.
Corruption charges and acquittal
In the early 1990s, one of the earliest accusations came in the form of stockbroker
Harshad Mehta
Harshad Shantilal Mehta (29 July 1954 — 31 December 2001) was an Indian stockbroker and a convicted fraudster. Mehta's involvement in the 1992 Indian securities scam made him infamous as a market manipulator.
Of the 27 criminal charges br ...
, who through his lawyer,
Ram Jethmalani
Ram Boolchand Jethmalani (14 September 1923 – 8 September 2019) was an Indian lawyer and politician. He served as India's Union minister of law and justice, as chairman of the Indian Bar Council, and as the president of the Supreme Court B ...
, revealed that he had paid a sum of one crore rupees to the then prime minister Rao for help in closing his cases.
Rao's government faced a
no-confidence motion
A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
in July 1993, because the opposition felt that it did not have sufficient numbers to prove a majority. It was alleged that Rao, through a representative, offered millions of rupees to members of the
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha ( lit. ''Jharkhand Liberation Front''; JMM) is a State political party in the Indian state of Jharkhand which was founded by Binod Bihari Mahato. It has one seat in the 17th Lok Sabha. Shibu Soren is the president of th ...
(JMM), and possibly a breakaway faction of the
Janata Dal
Janata Dal (“People’s Party”) was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha united on 11 ...
, to vote for him during the confidence motion.
Shailendra Mahato
Shailendra Mahto is an Indian politician. He was the member of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha. He represented twice as a Member of Parliament from Jamshedpur Lok Sabha constituency.
Early life
Shailendra Mahto was born on 11th October 1953 at a villag ...
, one of those members who had accepted the bribe, turned approver. In 1996, after Rao's term in office had expired, investigations began in earnest in the case. In 2000, after years of legal proceedings, a special court convicted Rao and his colleague,
Buta Singh
Buta Singh (21 March 1934 – 2 January 2021) was an Indian politician and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress. He was the Union Home Minister of India, Governor of Bihar and was chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Cas ...
(who is alleged to have escorted the MPs to the Prime Minister). Rao was sentenced to three years in prison for corruption. "I sentence the accused PV Narasimha Rao and Buta Singh to rigorous imprisonment up to three years and a fine of 100,000 rupees ($2,150)," the judge said in his order. Rao appealed to the
Delhi High Court
The High Court of Delhi (IAST: ''dillī uchcha nyāyālaya'') was established on 31 October 1966, through the ''Delhi High Court Act, 1966'', with four judges, Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. ...
and remained free on bail. In 2002, the Delhi High Court overturned the lower court's decision mainly due to the doubt in credibility of Mahato's statements (which were extremely inconsistent) and both Rao and Buta Singh were cleared of the charges.
Rao, along with fellow minister K. K. Tewary,
Chandraswami
Chandraswami (born Nemichand Jain; 29 October 1949 – 23 May 2017) was a controversial Indian Tantrik (practitioner of Tantra).
His father Dharamchand Gandhi Jain came from Behror in Rajasthan and worked as a money lender. He moved to Hyderabad ...
and K. N. Aggarwal, were accused of forging documents showing that Ajeya Singh had opened a bank account in the First Trust Corporation Bank in
Saint Kitts
Saint Kitts, officially the Saint Christopher Island, is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis cons ...
and deposited $21 million in it, making his father V. P. Singh its beneficiary. The alleged intent was to tarnish V. P. Singh's image. This supposedly happened in 1989. However, only after Rao's term as PM had expired in 1996, was he formally charged by the
Central Bureau of Investigation
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier investigating agency of India. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and governmen ...
(CBI) for the crime. Less than a year later the court acquitted him due to lack of evidence linking him with the case.
Lakhubhai Pathak, an Indian businessman living in England, alleged that
Chandraswami
Chandraswami (born Nemichand Jain; 29 October 1949 – 23 May 2017) was a controversial Indian Tantrik (practitioner of Tantra).
His father Dharamchand Gandhi Jain came from Behror in Rajasthan and worked as a money lender. He moved to Hyderabad ...
and K. N. Aggarwal alias Mamaji, along with Rao, cheated him out of $100,000. The amount was given for an express promise for allowing supplies of paper pulp in India, and Pathak alleged that he spent an additional $30,000 entertaining Chandraswami and his secretary. Narasimha Rao and Chandraswami were acquitted of the charges in 2003 and before his death, Rao was acquitted of all the cases charged against him.
Later life and financial difficulties
In spite of significant achievements in a difficult situation, in the 1996 general elections the Indian electorate voted out Rao's Congress Party. Soon, Sonia Gandhi's supporters forced Mr. Rao to step down as Party President. He was replaced by
Sitaram Kesri
Sitaram Kesri (15 November 1919 – 24 October 2000) was an Indian politician and parliamentarian. He became a union minister and served as President of the Indian National Congress from 1996 to 1998.
__TOC__
Political career
Pre-Independen ...
.
Rao rarely spoke of his personal views and opinions during his 5-year tenure. After his retirement from national politics, he published a novel called The Insider. The book, which follows a man's rise through the ranks of Indian politics, resembled events from Rao's own life.
According to a vernacular source, despite holding many influential posts in Government, he faced many financial troubles. One of his sons was educated with the assistance of his son-in-law. He also faced trouble paying fees for a daughter who was studying medicine. According to P. V. R. K. Prasad, an
Indian Administrative Service
The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. Considered the premier civil service of India, the IAS is one of the three arms of the All India Services along with the Indian ...
(IAS) officer who was Narasimha Rao's media advisor when the latter was Prime Minister, Rao asked his friends to sell away his house at
Banjara Hills
Banjara Hills is an urban commercial centre and one of the most affluent neighbourhoods in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. This is an upmarket locality close to Jubilee Hills. This area was a hilly forest and was least inhabited in the past. Only ...
to clear the dues of lawyers.
Death
Rao suffered a heart attack on 9 December 2004, and was taken to the
All India Institute of Medical Sciences
The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is a group of autonomous government public medical universities of higher education under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare , Government of India. These institutes ha ...
where he died 14 days later at the age of 83. His family wanted the body cremated in Delhi. "This is his karmabhoomi", Rao's son Prabhakara told Manmohan Singh. But it is alleged that Sonia Gandhi's closest aide
Ahmed Patel
Ahmedbhai Muhammedbhai Patel (21 August 194925 November 2020), also known as Ahmed Patel, was an Indian politician and Member of Parliament from the Indian National Congress. He was the political secretary to Congress President Sonia Gandhi.
...
and others ensured that the body was moved to Hyderabad. In Delhi, his body was not allowed inside AICC building. His body was kept in state at the Jubilee Hall in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
. His funeral was attended by the Prime Minister of India
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...
, the Home Affairs Minister
Shivraj Patil
Shivraj Vishwanath Patil (born 12 October 1935) is an Indian politician who was the Minister of Home Affairs of India, from 2004 to 2008 and 10th Speaker of the Lok Sabha from 1991 to 1996. He was Governor of the state of Punjab and Administra ...
, the
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...
(BJP) president L. K. Advani, the Defence Minister
Pranab Mukherjee
Dr. Pranab Mukherjee (11 December 193531 August 2020) was an Indian politician and statesman who served as the 13th president of India from 2012 until 2017. In a political career spanning five decades, Mukherjee was a senior leader in the India ...
, the Finance Minister
P. Chidambaram
Palaniappan Chidambaram (born 16 September 1945), better known as P. Chidambaram, is an Indian politician and lawyer who currently serves as Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha. He served as the Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee ...
and many other dignitaries. Rao was a long-time widower, since his wife died in 1970 and he was survived by his eight children. A memorial was built for P. V. Narasimha Rao located adjacent to
Sanjeevaiah Park
Sanjeevaiah Park is a public greenspace and park in the heart of Hyderabad, India. Built on along the banks of Hussain Sagar lake, the park is named after Damodaram Sanjivayya, an erstwhile Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. The park is manag ...
, developed in 2005 on of land known as P. V. Gyan Bhoomi. The Government of Telangana declared his birthday to be celebrated as a Telangana State function in 2014. 10 years after his death, P. V. Narasimha Rao was accorded a memorial in Delhi at Ekta Sthal, which is now integrated with Rashtriya Smriti, a common place for erecting memorials for former Presidents, PMs and others. The memorial is raised on a plinth in marble bearing text highlighting briefly his contributions. The plaque describes Rao: "Known as the scholar Prime Minister of India, Shri P V Narasimha Rao was born on 28 June 1921 in Vangara, Karimnagar District in Telangana state. He rose to prominence as freedom fighter who fought the misrule of the Nizam during the formative years of his political career. A reformer, educationist, scholar, conversant in 15 languages and known for his intellectual contribution, he was called the ‘Brihaspati’ (wiseman) of Andhra Pradesh."
Personal life
Narasimha Rao was 10 years old when he was married off to Satyamma in 1931, who died on 1 July 1970. They had three sons and five daughters. His eldest son
P. V. Ranga Rao
Pamulaparthi Venkata Ranga Rao (1940 – 1 August 2013) was an Indian politician who belonged to the Indian National Congress. He was son of former Prime Minister of India, P. V. Narasimha Rao
Early life
Rao was born in Vangara village in Karim ...
was an education minister in
Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy
Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy (16 August 1920 – 27 September 2001) served as the chief minister of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh in 1983 and then from 1992 to 1994. Reddy was a member of the Indian National Congress and was elected t ...
Hanamakonda
Hanumakonda is a major city and the district headquarters of Hanumakonda district in the Indian state of Telangana.
Earlier Hanumakonda was a separate city, then merged in Greater Warangal now. The three urban cities Kazipet, Hanumakonda and ...
Assembly Constituency, in Warangal District for two terms. His second son, P. V. Rajeshwar Rao, was a
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
of the
11th Lok Sabha
General elections were held in India in 1996 Indian general election, April–May 1996 to elect the members of the 11th Lok Sabha. The result of the election was a hung parliament, which would see three Prime Ministers in two years and force t ...
(15 May 1996 – 4 December 1997) from
Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency
Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 17 Lok Sabha (Lower House of the Parliament) constituencies in Telangana state in southern India.
Vidhan Sabha segments
Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency comprises the following Legislative A ...
.
Legacy
Biographical and political evaluation
On the occasion of 25 years of
economic liberalisation in India
The economic liberalisation in India refers to the opening of the country's economy to the world with the goal of making the economy more market and service-oriented, thus expanding the role of private and foreign investment. Indian economic ...
, there have been several books published by authors, journalists and civil servants evaluating Rao's contributions. While Vinay Sitapati's book ''Half Lion: How P.V. Narasimha Rao transformed India'' (2016) gives a renewed biographical picture of his entire life, Sanjay Baru's book ''1991: How P V Narasimha Rao made history'' (2016) and
Jairam Ramesh
Jairam Ramesh (born 9 April 1954) is an Indian politician belonging to Indian National Congress. He is a Member of Parliament representing Karnataka state in the Rajya Sabha. In July 2011, Jairam was elevated to the Union Council of Ministers o ...
's book From the brink to back: India's 1991 story (2015) focusses on his role in unleashing the reforms in the year 1991 as the Prime Minister of India.
Literary achievements
Rao's mother tongue was
Telugu
Telugu may refer to:
* Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India
*Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India
* Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language
** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode
S ...
, and he had an excellent command of
Marathi
Marathi may refer to:
*Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India
*Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people
*Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece
See also
*
* ...
. In addition to eight other Indian languages (
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
,
Gujarati
Gujarati may refer to:
* something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India
* Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat
* Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them
* Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...
,
Kannada
Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
,
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
,
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
. He was able to speak 17 languages. Due to his college education in
Fergusson College
Fergusson College is an autonomous public-private college offering various courses in the streams of arts and science in the city of Pune, India. It was founded in 1885 by the Deccan Education Society. Professor Vaman Shivram Apte was its fir ...
in
Pune
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
, then an affiliated college of the
University of Mumbai
The University of Mumbai is a collegiate university, collegiate, State university (India), state-owned, Public university, public research university in Mumbai.
The University of Mumbai is one of the largest universities in the world. , the un ...
(but now with
Pune University
Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), formerly the University of Poona, is a collegiate public state university located in the city of Pune, India. It was established in 1949, and is spread over a campus in the neighbourhood of Ganeshk ...
), he became a very prolific reader and speaker of Marathi. He translated the great Telugu literary work
Veyipadagalu
Veyi Padagalu (pronunciation: veɪjɪ pədəgɑlʊ, English: "A Thousand Hoods") is an epic Telugu novel written by Viswanatha Satyanarayana. It is a critically acclaimed work of 20th century Telugu literature and has been called "a novel of To ...
of ''Kavi Samraat''
Viswanatha Satyanarayana
Viswanatha Satyanarayana (10 September 1885 – 18 October 1976) was a 20th-century Telugu writer. His works included poetry, novels, dramatic play, short stories and speeches, covering a wide range of subjects such as analysis of his ...
into Hindi as ''Sahasraphan''. He also translated Hari Narayan Apte's Marathi novel ''
Pan Lakshat Kon Gheto
''Pan Lakshat Kon Gheto'' ( mr, पण लक्षात कोण घेतो?, English: ''But Who Cares...'') is an 1890 Marathi-language novel by Hari Narayan Apte. Written in autobiographical style, the novel tells the story of Yamuna, a y ...
'' (But Who Pays Attention?) into Telugu. He was also invited to be the chief guest of Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Sahitya Sanmelan where he gave speech in Marathi.
In his later life he wrote his autobiography, ''The Insider'', which depicts his experiences in politics.
"Sonia Gandhi praised contributions of all Congress prime ministers except P V Narasimha Rao in her speech ... Making no mention of Rao in her 15-minute speech, she said Rajiv Gandhi scripted the course of economic policies that were followed by the government (headed by Rao) for the following five years."
"Even today, the Congress leadership shows extreme reluctance to acknowledge the role PV Narasimha Rao played in appointing
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...
as his finance minister and giving him the freedom to unveil the economic reforms package to bail the Indian economy out of an unprecedented crisis. The Congress leadership was correct in blaming Narasimha Rao for his political misjudgment on the Ayodhya issue. But it is now time the same leadership also acknowledged Narasimha Rao's role in ushering in economic reforms."
Centenary celebrations
In June 2020,
Government of Telangana
The Government of Telangana also known as Telangana Government, is the governing authority of the state of Telangana in India. It consists of an executive, a judiciary and a legislative.
The state government is headed by the Governor of Telan ...
, led by
Telangana Rashtra Samithi
Bharat Rashtra Samithi ( ; BRS), formerly known as Telangana Rashtra Samithi ( TRS), is an Indian political party which is predominantly active in the state of Telangana. It was founded on 27 April 2001 as by K. Chandrashekar Rao, with a singl ...
has declared to organise one-year long centenary celebrations of Rao. The state government also decided to set up a memorial and five bronze statues at various places, including
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
,
Warangal
Warangal () is a city in the Indian state of Telangana and the district headquarters of Warangal district. It is the second largest city in Telangana with a population of 704,570 per 2011 Census of India, and spreading over an .
Warangal ser ...
,
Karimnagar
Karimnagar is also known as Elagandula (Ancient name)
is a city and District Headquarters in the Indian state of Telangana. Karimnagar is a major urban agglomeration and fifth largest City in the state. It is governed by Municipal corporation a ...
In the year 2019, an independent biographical documentary film named ''P V: Change with Continuity'' (2019) directed and produced by Sravani Kotha and Srikar Reddy Gopaladinne released on the streaming platform
Vimeo
Vimeo, Inc. () is an American video hosting, sharing, and services platform provider headquartered in New York City. Vimeo focuses on the delivery of high-definition video across a range of devices. Vimeo's business model is through software as ...
. The documentary features rare archival footage and interviews of several distinguished people closely related to Rao's life and work.
Suresh Kumar appeared as Rao in the 2019 film '' NTR: Mahanayakudu'' directed by Krish which chart the life of the Indian actor-politician
N. T. Rama Rao
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (28 May 1923 – 18 January 1996), often referred to by his initials NTR, was an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who served as List of Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh fo ...
Vijay Gutte
Vijay Ratnakar Gutte is an Indian film director and producer. He is the son of MLA Ratnakar Gutte from Gangakhed constituency of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. He is known for his film '' The Accidental Prime Minister'' starring Anupam Khe ...
, about
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...
.
''
Pradhanmantri
''Pradhanmantri'' () is an Indian television political documentary series, hosted by actor-director Shekhar Kapur on Hindi news channel ABP News. It premiered on 13 July 2013. It aimed to bring to the audience never-seen-before facts of Indian ...
'' (), a 2013 Indian docudrama television series which aired on
ABP News
ABP News is an Indian Hindi-language free-to-air television news channel owned by ABP Group. The news channel was launched in 1998 originally as STAR News before being acquired by ABP Group. It won the Best Hindi News Channel award in the 21st ...
and covers the various policies and political tenures of Indian PMs, based the twentieth episode - "P. V. Narasimha Rao and Corruption charges against him" - on his term as the country's leader;
Ravi Jhankal
Ravi Jhankal is an Indian television, stage and film actor, most known for working in Shyam Benegal's films, including ''Welcome to Sajjanpur'' (2008) and ''Well Done Abba'' (2010) and for the role of P. V. Narasimha Rao in ''Pradhanmantri (TV S ...
portrayed the role of Rao.
Awards
Rao was awarded the Pratibha Murthy Lifetime Achievement Award. Many people across the party line supported the name of P. V. Narasimha Rao for
Bharat Ratna
The Bharat Ratna (; ''Jewel of India'') is the highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conferred in recognition of "exceptional service/performance of the highest orde ...
.
Telangana
Telangana (; , ) is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India b ...
Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao supported the move to give Bharat Ratna to Rao. BJP leader
Subramanian Swamy
Subramanian Swamy (born 15 September 1939) is an Indian politician, economist and statistician. Before joining politics, he was a professor of Mathematical Economics at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. He is known for his Hindu na ...
supported the move to give Bharat Ratna to Rao. According to Sanjay Baru, PM
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...
wanted to give Bharat Ratna to Rao during his tenure but failed.
In September 2020,
Telangana Legislative Assembly
The Telangana Legislative Assembly or Telangana Śāsana Sabha is the lower house of the Telangana Legislature. The Legislative Assembly of Telangana currently consists of 119 elected members and 1 nominated member from the Anglo-Indian communi ...
adopted a resolution seeking to confer Bharat Ratna on Rao. The resolution also requested the Central Government to rename the
University of Hyderabad
The University of Hyderabad (IAST: ''Hydarāvād visvavidyālayamu'') is a top ranking public central research university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
Founded in 1974, this mostly residential campus has more than 5,000 students a ...
after him.
See also
*
1993 Bombay bombings
The 1993 Bombay bombings were a series of 12 terrorist bombings that took place in Bombay, Maharashtra, on 12 March 1993. The single-day attacks resulted in 257 fatalities and 1,400 injuries. The attacks were coordinated by Dawood Ibrahim, le ...
*
Demolition of the Babri Masjid
The demolition of the Babri Masjid was illegally carried out on 6 December 1992 by a large group of activists of the Vishva Hindu Parishad and allied organisations. The 16th-century Babri Masjid in the city of Ayodhya, in Uttar Pradesh, had ...
* The Quest For Peace with Kotha Satchidananda Murthy (1986)
The Great Suicide written pseudonymously (1990)
* India and the Asia-Pacific: Forging a New Relationship (1994)
* The Insider (1998)
* A Long Way: Selected Speeches (2002)
* Ayodhya 6 December 1992 published posthumously (2006)
* Half - Lion: How P.V Narasimha Rao Transformed India by Vinay Sitapati (2016), Retitled in 2018 when released by Oxford University Press as The Man Who Remade India: A Biography of P.V. Narasimha Rao by Vinay Sitapathi
* 1991: How P.V. Narasimha Rao Made History by
Sanjaya Baru
Sanjaya Baru is a political commentator and policy analyst. He served as Secretary General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) until his resignation in April 2018. Prior to this, he was Director for Geo-Economic ...
(2016)
* Narasimha Rao: Unsung Hero by Krishna Mohan Sharma (2017)
*
* Shukla, Subhash. "Foreign Policy Of India Under Narasimha Rao Government" (PhD dissertation, U of Allahabad, 1999 online free bibliography pp 488–523.
* Singh, Sangeeta. "Trends in India's Foreign Policy: 1991-2009." (PhD dissertation, Aligarh Muslim University, 2016 online