The Accidental Prime Minister is an industrious account by Sanjaya Baru of former Prime Minister Man Mohan Singh’s survival of two terms in office despite being a novice in politics. Sanjaya Baru, who was Singh’s media adviser during the reign tried vehemently to project his former boss in positive light and glorify achievements of UPA government under leadership of Man Mohan Singh. The book is an inside account of P.M's reluctance in handling vexed national issues where Congress leadership has contrarian view. It talks about the complex Man Mohan - Sonia Gandhi relationship, the coterie culture in the grand old party, the open contempt of P.M by his subordinates and colleagues and lastly numerous corruption scandals that led to its downfall.
The book traverses the journey of a novice employed on top chair by aala-kamaan superseding veteran politicians thus inviting there ire to becoming a confidant leader acknowledged as "Singh is King" by media after much publicized nuclear deal. The irony is Sanjay Baru very conveniently ignores the epithet "Sin is King" leveled by the same media by the end of UPA second term due to stubborn, insensitive, corrupt and arrogant government under P.M's leadership that lead to sullying country's image around the globe. While all praise and appreciation was bestowed on P.M for successfully confronting hardships in life in general and during UPA's tenure in particular but when it comes to nonperformance or governance debacles Sanjay Baru very skillfully employed old tactics of sympathy generation and deflecting attention on unforeseen hands.
"The outgoing PM, on his part, never shied away from political reality. When confronted with a difficult demand from a political leader, a coalition partner or just about anyone, he would confess to them that he did not have the last word. He was, after all, just an “accidental prime minister”. The actual power centre was Sonia Gandhi."
Extract from book
Sanjay Baru cleverly deflected the question arising in readers mind about corruption scams and paralyzed governance as the incompetency of P.M or his lust to continue in office. Also difficult to understand whether P.M willingly ceded his authority to Sonia Gandhi as a submissive sycophant or she brazenly encroached upon it? In the end, readers belief is cemented that there were two power centers during UPA rein with ministers having no or little accountability towards P.M. At the end of this dysfunctional government's tenure P.M Man Mohan Singh aptly stated "You see, you must understand one thing. I have come to terms with this. There cannot be two centers of power".
This book is a serious brave attempt by a renowned journalist to showcase achievements of P.M ManMohan Singh while playing victimhood card to garner sympathy for all the blunders. There can be no doubt in anyone's mind about the credentials of P.M Singh's personal honesty, sincerity and hardworking nature but as an able administrator who was supposed to take tough,bold decisions for country and hold his ground without wilting to adversaries or party leadership only history will judge.
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