R Venkataraman was actually among the many few luminaries who’ve graced the Rashtrapati Bhavan (RB). I had the privilege of serving as his press secretary throughout his presidency (1987-1992). Venkatraman introduced unprecedented expertise to that workplace. He was a member of the Constituent Meeting, a pioneering decade-long minister for industries within the Tamil Nadu authorities, a four-time member of the Lok Sabha, and a Union minister, at completely different occasions, of finance, business and defence. In 1984, he grew to become Vice-President, and in 1987, the President.
As an individual, he was exceptionally well mannered, carrying his many distinctions frivolously. In his work fashion, he was a bureaucrat-politician. The President has no formal workplace and often operates out of one of many formal drawing rooms. However Venkatraman needed an everyday workplace and transformed a smallish room referred to as Shanti Niketan into one. He adopted a strict schedule and was an important stickler for time. Within the rooms of his senior officers, a lightweight would come on when the President entered his workplace. It was all the time at 10am sharp.
My every day time to fulfill him was at 10.45am, to temporary him on any attention-grabbing information gadgets and editorials that merited his consideration. These conferences grew to become an important studying expertise as a result of, typically, whereas listening to a selected viewpoint on politics or economics, he would launch right into a mini-tutorial on the topic. I used to be additionally his speechwriter, and his feedback or modifications to the draft have been all the time illuminating. He took choices strictly inside the ambit of the Structure, on which he was an skilled, working with 4 Prime Ministers and appointing three. “The President is like an emergency mild, which comes into play solely when wanted,” he would typically quip.
Like all nice males, Venkatraman too had his idiosyncrasies. Once I first met him, he mentioned, “Please bear in mind, I are not looking for publicity.” This aversion generally led him to shun media protection even when it was vital. An instance of this was his State go to to China in 1992, the primary by any Indian President, when he determined no media delegation would accompany him.
I disagreed and consulted joint secretary Gopalkrishna Gandhi, who knew the President like few others did, having served with him since he was Vice-President. His view was that on this matter, the President was unlikely to budge. Nonetheless, I felt it was my responsibility to attempt. Once I did, his rapid response was a flat “no”. It required braveness to persist, however I sought permission to take action: “Sir, your go to to China isn’t a private one. It’s, actually, a historic go to. The nation could be considering understanding about it. I agree we should always not take the same old media delegation, however would you agree to think about 5 – 6 senior journalists, whom you already know properly?” He was taken abruptly, and requested, “Who do you keep in mind?” I used to be ready. “Sir, I used to be considering of Dileep Padgaonkar, editor of Occasions of India, HK Dua, editor of Hindustan Occasions, KK Katyal, veteran journalist of The Hindu, Saeed Naqvi, well-known columnist, Prem Prakash, chief editor of the ANI information company, and, in fact, Doordarshan and All India Radio.” He was silent for some time, after which mentioned, “Go forward.” Consequently, and far to his satisfaction, his China go to obtained widespread and front-page protection.
Venkatraman was very well being acutely aware. On the age of 80, he would stroll briskly for an hour, play badminton thrice per week, and golf on Sundays. It was, in fact, “Presidential golf”, the place if he hit a foul shot, one other ball was positioned earlier than him!
As soon as, on a go to to Rohtang Go at 14,000 ft, he wanted no oxygen assist, whereas a lot youthful members of his entourage did. His nice love was Indian classical music, and infrequently, he would ask me to discover a uncommon recording within the archives of AIR. The small live performance corridor in RB grew to become a vibrant hub of one of the best classical artists. He was a vegetarian, didn’t drink, and believed that should you stay a balanced life, you’ll — based on our shastras — stay for 100 years. Prophetically, he died in 2009, on the age of 98.
Pavan Ok Varma is writer, diplomat, and former Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha). Simply Like That may be a weekly column the place Varma shares nuggets from the world of historical past, tradition, literature, and private reminiscences. The views expressed are private
