To insist that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is not quite his own man is false. Forget being accused as the weakest PM by the BJP. The very fact that the story of his government's performance so far has drawn maximum responses, is proof enough that India's PM holds fort.
Manmohan Singh spoke on a host of subjects — the UNSC seat for India, Sonia's influence, India's vote on Iran, Natwar's comeback, Government's tenure, Left allies, coalition constraints, Indo-US nuke deal, 7 per cent economic growth, Indo-Pak relations, relations with China and the Bihar crisis. But what drew maximum comments were his push for a more open economy and his relationship with UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.
Here's how it went.
Atul Saxena from US's Tarrytown was effusive in his praise for the PM.
"This great man in blue turban is not only wiser but an intellectual as well. He is the only person at this time in our country who deserves this post. Our country needs Dr Manmohan Singh at least for the next 10 years. He is number 1 and he deserves rating 10 out of 10, not 7.5."
Araj Sawhney of Belmont, USA, too seemed to reflect similar views. He said, "Manmohan Singh is doing a great job as an honest professional and is concentrating on progress in domestic areas as well as in foreign relations. He is the most trusted and job conscious professional. Give him the credit he deserves and do not stir up political mud on his excellent performance."
{{/usCountry}}Araj Sawhney of Belmont, USA, too seemed to reflect similar views. He said, "Manmohan Singh is doing a great job as an honest professional and is concentrating on progress in domestic areas as well as in foreign relations. He is the most trusted and job conscious professional. Give him the credit he deserves and do not stir up political mud on his excellent performance."
{{/usCountry}}Canada's Sayal, however, chose to give an elaborate explanation on why he felt that a lot more needed to be done. Poverty alleviation should define the progress chart of any Indian government, he said. A healthy GPD didn't necessarily mean the job had been done. The benefits of liberalisation ought to be more broad-based.
Here's how he put it.
"I just want to remind him that performance of Govt of a poor country is seen in the eyes and through the mouth of the poorest people and not the so-called leaders. The annual growth depicts progress if it is for the basic needs of poor population. But if it goes to banks deposits only, it shows bad planning and corruption. If millionaires are increasing, it is not progress, it is corruption."
"PM must be aware of formulae for mean status, standard deviation and poverty gaps. Top 10 per cent millionaires are not counted towards calculation of average income if the difference is more than the 10 per cent of the average national income," he added explaining the economics of poverty removal.
"By that calculation, India has not shown progress of even 1 per cent during the last 2 years. Please remain honest, then only poverty will be removed. Govt has to work towards poverty elimination and private business is merely a source, not an achievement in itself," he further said.
However, not everyone thinks like that.
Singham from Michigan, USA, felt Manmohan was hardly the controlling authority in the Government and worked more as a technocrat than a political head. Naturally, he was pretty amused at the PM's idea of his Government's report card.
"Has he done any work to judge his activity? All we know is MNCs are pumping money to certain sections of India, deteriorating law and order, converting agricultural lands to buildings, worsening corruption. Moreover, a country was sold to an Italian businessman! What else if not a weak PM?"
On Manmohan Singh being described as the "weakest PM" by Advani and company, Amandeep Singh Gill from Amritsar was rather caustic.
"Certainly Manmohan Singh is weaker than LK Advani or Atal Bihari Vajpayee because he cannot order the massacre of millions of innocent people (read Gujarat)," he quipped.
So there's no denying that Manmohan Singh is the man of the moment.