From Sunil Bharti Mittal to Gautam Adani: Business leaders mourn demise of former PM Dr Manmohan Singh

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises paid his heartfelt condolence to former Prime Minister late Dr Manmohan Singh, who passed away late Thursday evening at AIIMS, Delhi. 

The industrialist recalled his engagements and meetings with the former prime minister over the past three decades and expressed sorrow over his demise. Talking to ANI, Mittal said the Indian economy owes a lot to Dr Manmohan Singh, particularly because of his milestone reforms of the early 1990s.

"I think the Indian economy owes a lot to Dr Singh, especially my generation who created remarkable success stories around aviation, broadcasting, telecom, Infosys, Wipro, and Airtel," Mittal said, as quoted by news agency ANI. 

"We all know his economic reforms. People like me would not have been in my position today, had the 1991, and 1992 reforms not unshackled the burden of regulations and licensing raj and lowered the barriers to imports and FDI", he added. 

Mittal further stressed that Dr Singh's demise is a huge loss to the nation, adding, "I must say, I have had seen his personal warmth, and engagements from time to time on many matters. He was always generous and kind". 

The removal of licensing Raj was like unleashing new energy for the entrepreneurial minds of his era, Sunil Bharti Mittal further asserted. "The reforms he brought in when he was at the helms of affairs at the Ministry of Finance back then were 'unparalleled'", he stated. 

As a prime minister, late Dr Manmohan Singh worked around for continued momentum in the country's economy, ensuring all sections of the society were gaining, Mittal added. 

Regarded as a great economic reformer, Dr Manmohan Singh is known to have played a key role in shaping India's economy through Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation (LPG). According to political scientists, Dr Singh had to face criticism from within his party when he proposed to introduced the new economic policies back in 1991, when India was on the verge of bakruptcy. Despite this, he remained fixated on his purpose to bolster the country's economic growth. 

At that time, Dr Manmohan Singh served as the finance minister in the then-PM PV Narsimha Rao-led cabinet. 

Furthermore, N. Chandrasekaran, chairman, Tata Sons, expressed grief over Dr Singh's demise, recalling him as "one of the stalwarts who envisioned a new, liberalised India that is taking its rightful place in the world". 

“We mourn the passing away of former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, one of the stalwarts who envisioned a new, liberalised India that is taking its rightful place in the world. Dr. Singh will always be remembered for his visionary thinking and deep insights while always being humble and upholding his personal values. His inspiring leadership earned him respect across the world,” he said. 

Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani also paid his heartfelt condolences over the demise of Dr. Manmohan Singh.

Deeply saddened by the passing of Dr Manmohan Singh. History will forever honour his pivotal role in the transformative 1991 reforms that reshaped India and opened its doors to the world. A rare leader who spoke softly but achieved monumental strides through his actions, Dr… pic.twitter.com/seW5Fk5hKY

— Gautam Adani (@gautam_adani) December 26, 2024

Sharing a post on X (formerly Twitter) he wrote, “deeply saddened by the passing of Dr Manmohan Singh. History will forever honour his pivotal role in the transformative 1991 reforms that reshaped India and opened its doors to the world. A rare leader who spoke softly but achieved monumental strides through his actions, Dr Singh's life remains a masterclass in leadership, humility and service to the nation and will inspire generations to come."

With inputs from ANI.