The Hindu Business Line : Manmohan Singh appointed PM — Country will be safe in his hands, says Sonia

The Prime Minister-elect, Dr Manmohan Singh, with the Congress President, Ms Sonia Gandhi, after meeting the President, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, in the Capital on Wednesday. -- Kamal Narang

New Delhi , May 19

DR Manmohan Singh is all set to take over as the country's Prime Minister. The 71-year-old former Finance Minister, who ushered in India's economic reforms programme in July 1991, was today invited by the President, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, to form a Government at the Centre.

This follows Dr Singh's formal election as the leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) after last-ditch efforts to persuade the party President, Ms Sonia Gandhi, to retract her decision on Tuesday not to take up the top post met with renewed failure.

A formal swearing-in date is expected to be conveyed to the President by tomorrow.

Emerging after his 15-minute late evening meeting with the President along with Ms Gandhi, Dr Singh said that the `burden' of Prime Ministership had been thrust upon him, despite the political mandate being in favour of the Congress President. Repeated attempts to convince her to assume the Prime Minister's office had failed, he pointed out.

A visibly relaxed and beaming Ms Gandhi, on her part, said "our country will be safe under Dr Manmohan Singh's hands". Ms Gandhi would, however, continue to be the Congress President and Chairperson of the CPP. In fact, the Congress even made amendments to its Constitution to enable the creation of a Chairperson of the CPP (elected by Members from both Houses), who would then nominate the leader of the CPP to head the Government.

Whether this would be lead to the creation of a parallel centre of power through `remote control' is a question that is being raised by most political analysts, even as Ms Gandhi's son and recently elected Member of Parliament from Amethi, Mr Rahul Gandhi, denied this possibility.

Dr Singh said that his Government's priority would be to carry forward Rajiv Gandhi's vision that "the 21st century will be India's century" and implement a model of economic reforms that would have a `human element'. At the same time, he reiterated his earlier statement to the investor community "that there is no reason for panic" and his Government was committed to "responsible macro-economic policy".

Dr Singh, who was Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (September 1982 to January 1985) and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission (January 1985 to July 1987), became the country's Finance Minister on June 21, 1991.

During his tenure till May 15, 1996, he presented five full Union Budgets and more importantly, steered the country through a severe balance of payments crisis that triggered a process of reforms, which have subsequently proved irreversible.

Dr Singh is currently the Leader of the Congress in the Rajya Sabha. He will be the fourth member from the Upper House to occupy the high office after Mrs Indira Gandhi, Mr H.D. Deve Gowda and Mr I.K. Gujral.

Earlier, in a one-and-a-half page statement, Ms Gandhi urged her partymen to support the new Prime Minister. "The Congress party is overflowing with talent. Let us give India the government it deserves", she said.