"The people of India deeply love you." This was how visiting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh spoke of US President George W Bush while praising him effusively after their 40-minute meeting at the Oval office in White House on September 25, 2008. He was flagging Bush's 'important and historic' role in forging several bilateral initiatives including the landmark Indo-US civil nuclear deal.
While the weather was cloudy and rainy in Washington, it was all warmth inside the White House during the eight-minute press interaction by the two leaders who had a word of praise for each other on a few occasions, showing a spirit of bonhomie.
But Singh's gushing praise of Bush in what was seen as a sweeping declaration created a flutter. Singh died on Thursday night at the age of 92.
The landmark civil nuclear agreement had led to the end of 34-year isolation of India in nuclear commerce.
Both the Left, which withdrew support to the UPA-1 government over the nuclear deal, and the BJP had slammed Singh's effusive praise of Bush even as the Congress, which hailed the Indo-US nuclear deal as the "greatest" event for India in the 21st century, found itself on the backfoot.
"The people of India deeply love you, and all that you have done to bring our two countries closer to each other is something history will...," Singh, who left a lasting imprint on India's external relations, told the news conference where this correspondent was also present.
Bush, who shared an excellent rapport with Singh, told the prime minister how he appreciated his friendship and his leadership.
"I appreciate your friendship and I appreciate your leadership," Bush said.
The president then went on to say, "You and I have worked hard to change the relationship between our countries. India is a great country with an incredibly bright future, and it's in the US interests to have a good, strong strategic relationship with India. And we've worked hard to achieve that." Touching upon the civil nuclear deal initiated in July 2005, Bush told Singh, "It has taken a lot of work on both our parts, a lot of courage on your part." "All in all, ours is a very strong relationship at a state level and at a personal level, and I appreciate you coming." The prime minister in his response said, "When history is written, I think it will be recorded that President George W Bush played a historic role in bringing our two democracy closer to each other." Singh, who will be remembered for his uncompromising commitment to secure the Indo-US nuclear deal, told Bush that the president had played the "most important role in the massive transformation of India-United States relations".
In the context of the tortuous journey of the Indo-US nuclear deal, the prime minister told the president these are difficult issues and at each stage it was "your leadership, your personal intervention, which resolved all the difficulties that were affecting the progress of these negotiations".
At another point, while referring to how the nuclear restrictive regime will end after the Nuclear Suppliers Group waiver, Singh said, "For 34 years India has suffered from a nuclear apartheid. We have not been able to trade in nuclear material, nuclear reactors, nuclear raw materials. And when this restrictive regime ends I think a great deal of credit will go to President Bush. And for this I am very grateful to you, Mr. President." A year later, Bush, who had demitted office in January 2009, again praised Singh during his India visit.
"I really like Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The Prime Minister is a wise leader," he said at the HT Leadership summit in Delhi on October 31, 2009.
Bush, who was at his humorous best, complimented Singh a day after the Indian leader described him as a "great friend of India".
Bush, who showered praise on Singh, described the economic liberalisation process initiated by India in 1991 when Singh was the Finance Minister as one of the two important events of that year that led to transformation of Indo-US ties.
On his second visit to India since March 2006 when he came here as President, Bush said he was "honoured" to be back here.
Reacting to Singh's "People of India deeply love you" remark, CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat had said, "We always knew that PM Manmohan Singh is in love with president Bush. Why is he getting people of India in between (the relationship)?" CPI national secretary D Raja said, "At a time when Bush's rating is so low in his own country, it does not augur well for the Indian PM to say such a thing." The BJP also appeared to be on the same page as the Left parties. "All I can say is that the personal adulation of PM Manmohan Singh cannot become India's adulation," BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said.
Congress media cell chairperson Veerappa Moily was hard put to defend the prime minister's remark to Bush.
Asked how Singh could speak on behalf of the entire people about their liking for Bush, Moily said the statement in general was an expression of India's "tolerant and accommodating" attitude.
"India has never practised a hate culture - there's nothing wrong with the PM saying that," he said.
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