Former President Bharat Ratna Pranab Mukherjee passed away on Monday at the age of 84. Mukherjee had, earlier this month, undergone brain surgery at the Army Research and Referral hospital in the national capital.
A vital pillar of UPA, quintessential Congressman Pranab Mukherjee's 4-decade-long eventful political career ended on a high note as the President. He wanted to be the people's Prime Minister but as fate would have it, he was elected the 13th President of India in July 2012 where Mukherjee contested the presidential elections against P.A Sangma, in which he won 70 percent of the electoral college vote.
He was a true 'Ajatshatru' of Indian politics, a man without enemies. Both the government and the opposition respected him greatly for his persona was that of a man of ethics.
Poltu, as he was called by his family and close friends was a man of short stature but high values. Well read as he was, Mukherjee did justice to whatever role he was entrusted with, from the beginning of his political career in 1969 to the time he swore in as the President of the nation. Between 1969 to 2012, Mukherjee headed four major ministries, which included Finance, Commerce, External Affairs, and Defence. In fact, he was voted the best Finance Minister in the World by Euromoney, in 1984. Mukherjee is said to be the most versatile minister of India. He is the only minister to have handled four major ministries, defense, commerce, foreign, and finance. In 1984, Mukherjee was voted the Best Finance Minister in the World by Euromoney magazine.
Pranab was born into a Bengali family at Mirati, a village in the Bengal Presidency of British India (now in Birbhum district, West Bengal). His father, Kamada Kinkar Mukherjee was active in the Indian independence movement and was a member of the West Bengal Legislative Council between 1952 and 1964 as a representative of the Indian National Congress and was the member of AICC. He was the main inspiration for Pranab to join the world's biggest political field. Interestingly, Mukherjee was never keen about state-level politics unlike many others, and started his electoral career straight from the Rajya Sabha in 1969 as a nominee of Bangla Congress - a splinter group of the Congress. Soon, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi spotted his talent and roped him in the Congress.
The close association with Gandhi resulted in Mukherjee's steady rise in politics till 1984 when Gandhi was assassinated by her own bodyguards. After the demise of Indira Gandhi, Mukherjee quit the Congress and formed his own political party, the Rashtriya Samajwadi Party. The President was known to be a compulsive workaholic. According to his daughter Sharmishta, he worked for almost 18 hours a day and hardly took any leaves, except for his visit to Mirati, his hometown, during the Durga Puja (Can't-miss Pujo if you are Bong!). Indira Gandhi once suggested to Mukherjee that he hire an English tutor and brush up his pronunciation. He simply refused, preferring his thickly accented Bengali English which goes out to highlight how he valued his ethics and his identity.
Pranab da was a deeply religious man and did not take any call, however important when performing his puja. He could recite Sanskrit shlokas and "Chandi Path" from memory. Though, it must be mentioned that just like any other man, Mukherjee had his own flaws. Till his 50s, Mukherjee was also fond of smoking - but only pipes. Along with some cigarette-loving MPs, he formed a ‘smokers' club’ in parliament long before the anti-tobacco campaign became a frenzy, and smoking was banned in most parts of the parliament including its hallowed central hall.
Mukherjee eventually gave up smoking and turned into a frugal eater. But an old habit of working on the most important files late at night never died (See? Stop scolding us for studying late night Mom and Dad>>). When most of his officers would be sleeping and most of his personal staff retired for the day, Mukherjee would open the files and work till 1am. After work, he turns on Rabindrasangeet on his CD player before going to sleep.
Mukherjee is said to have had loved his pipes, even after he quit smoking years ago.
"He never smoked cigarettes, only the pipe. After he was asked to quit smoking for health issues, he wouldn't smoke but would keep the pipe in his mouth, without any nicotine, and chew the stem of the pipe, just to get the feel of it," Ghoshal told PTI.
A proud owner of over 500 smoking pipes gifted to him by different heads of states and other foreign dignitaries, Mukherjee has donated the collection to the Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum.
His first pipe, Ghoshal said, was given to him by senior Congress leader Debkanta Barua from Assam and the love for his trademark Dunhill pipe continued thereon.
During his tenure as the president, Mukherjee promulgated the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013, which provides for amendment of the Indian Penal Code, Indian Evidence Act, and Code of Criminal Procedures, in case of laws related to sexual offenses. Mukherjee believed in the power of justice. As the president, he rejected many mercy pleas, which included mercy pleas of Afzal Guru and Ajmal Kasab. Until the time he became the President, the tag of being a permanent ‘PM-in-waiting’ remained stuck with Mukherjee. He had been the second-in-command to three prime ministers. He has also written about his expectation to be PM in his memoir, The Coalition Years — 1996 – 2012. Though Mukherjee always remained the second-in-command, he was by far one of the most powerful ministers and influential politicians in the Congress. He was the member of Congress Working Committee, the apex decision-making body for the grand old party, for 23 years and had friends cutting across party lines. Within the Congress, he was famous for his consensus-building ability.
In January 2017, Mukherjee announced that he would not contest for 2017 Presidential elections citing "advanced age and failing health". Though he retired from politics, citing health issues, he did not really refrain from attending political events. He in fact attended an RSS event, which took everyone by surprise. He enjoyed a good rapport with Prime Minister Narendra Modi too. After Modi became the PM for the first time in 2014, he called Mukherjee a “father figure” and said the latter “handheld him through the maze of national governance”.
In 2019, he was conferred the Bharat Ratna by President Ram Nath Kovind during a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi.
Mukherjee had reportedly suffered injuries on the forehead and temple after a fall in the bathroom on 9 August. He was brought to the Army R&R Hospital the next morning where a CT scan suggested a clot in his brain. He underwent a “lifesaving emergency surgery” to remove it, according to the hospital.
He had tested positive for Covid-19 prior to the surgery.
While the surgery was stated to have been successful, he remained in a “critical” state and on ventilator support since. His condition deteriorated Monday, with the hospital saying he has suffered a “septic shock” due to his lung infection. At 5:46 PM IST his son Abhijit Mukherjee broke the news of his sad demise on Twitter.
A scholar, a history buff, a disciplined politician, and as described by many - "a man of all seasons", Pranabda's demise has left a void in Indian politics and he will be remembered as a great man for all the years to come.
May his soul rest in peace _/\_
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