Kerala Assembly pays homage to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

Kerala Assembly pays tribute to former PM Manmohan Singh, highlighting his economic reforms and defense of democratic values.

The Kerala Legislative Assembly on Monday (January 20, 2025) paid homage to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who passed away on December 26, remembering him as a liberal-minded Prime Minister, an internationally respected economist who steered India’s economic reforms and a resolute statesman who remained, throughout, a staunch defender of democratic and secular values.  

In Manmohan Singh’s death, the country has lost an extraordinary individual who was a gifted economist and a soft-spoken yet firm patriot who held secular values in high regard, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said. 

While the Left front disagreed with some of his and the UPA government’s policies, Manmohan Singh’s stand on defending Constitutional values and the democratic system is commendable, Mr. Vijayan said.

Mr. Vijayan recalled notable initiatives such as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the Right to Information Act of the Manmohan Singh-led first UPA government that had the backing of the Left front.

Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan remembered the softspoken Manmohan Singh as an advocate of secular and democratic values and an internationally-acclaimed economist who astutely steered India through a crippling global recession. His sweeping economic reforms may have drawn criticism, but they filled the nation’s coffers and generated employment, Mr. Satheesan said.

“But the important question is, what was done with that wealth? He took the initiative to ensure its equitable redistribution,” Mr. Satheesan said.  By introducing the RTI, Manmohan Singh sought to uphold the loftiest ideals of democracy, he said.

Speaker A.N. Shamseer remembered Singh as the Union Finance Minister who launched economic liberalisation in India. As Prime Minister in the Left-backed UPA-1 government, his Ministry launched farsighted welfare measures. In Manmohan Singh’s death, India has lost an able economist and a resolute statesman, Mr. Shamser said.