Manmohan Singh
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|---|---|
| Date of Birth: | September 26, 1932 |
| Place of Birth: | Gah, West Punjab |
| Prime Minister of India | |
| Tenure Order: | 13th Prime Minister |
| Political party: | Congress (I) |
| Took office: | May 22, 2004 |
| Predecessor: | Atal Behari Vajpayee |
Dr Manmohan Singh (born September 26, 1932 in Gah, West Punjab (now Pakistan)) is the thirteenth prime minister of India. He is from the Indian National Congress. The Congress alliance won a surprisingly high number of seats in the Parliamentary elections of 2004. The Left Front decided to support a Congress alliance government from outside in order to "keep communal forces out" of power. Sonia Gandhi was elected leader of Congress Parliamentary Party and was expected to become the Prime Minister but in a surprise move, declined to accept the post and instead nominated Dr. Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister. There were protests within the Congress about her refusal but eventually people accepted her decision and the allies too accepted her choice. Singh secured the nomination for prime minister on May 19, 2004 when President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam officially asked him to form a government.
A member of the Sikh faith, Singh was sworn in on May 22, 2004 as India's first non-Hindu Prime Minister.
Singh is widely regarded as the architect of India's economic reform programme. His policies of economic liberalizations and reforms as finance minister under the Narasimha Rao government in the 1990s, including reduction of several redundant socialist policies, brought the country back from a looming economic bankruptcy. He is an economist, formerly connected with the International Monetary Fund and was educated at Nuffield College, Oxford, St John's College, Cambridge and Punjab University.
Although his economic policies were widely popular, especially among the middle class, he lost his election to the Lok Sabha from South Delhi in 1999. He has been the member of the Lok Sabha from 1991-1996 and a member of the Rajya Sabha from 2001 to the present.
A rather low-key politician, Manmohan Singh has had a "squeaky clean" image and was advisor to Sonia Gandhi throughout the election campaign in 2004. He was awarded the Outstanding Parliamentarian Award in 2002.
Singh has been married since 1958, and has three daughters. His appointment is also notable as it comes 20 years after India witnessed significant trouble between the Indian government and Sikhs, which ultimately led to the assassination of Indira Gandhi.
Career
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