Just before launching her book, “Pranab, My Father”, Sharmistha Mukherjee, daughter of late President Pranab Mukherjee, shares her idea behind writing the book in an exclusive interview with India News. Through her book, she reminds the readers about the personal, political and social life of the late President. Excerpts:
Q: You are daughter of late President Dr. Pranab Mukherjee. Being his daughter, you had the opportunity to know him personally. First of all, tell us about your relationship with him.
A: First of all, I can say that he was more than a father to me. He taught me everything. As he was a doting father for me, I had the privilege of enjoying healthy discussion with him on a variety of issues—being it personal, social, political. In a way, she shaped me in a holistic way. In his personal life too, he was very simple, always walking in the morning and then, writing something in a diary which ultimately remained a mystery for people around him about what he wrote, what he thought. He was very clear about his duties and never indulged in politics of interference. He never believed in blame-game as he used to believe that he belongs to a different set of ideologies.
Q: He was one of the towering politicians of the Bengal as well as the country. How is your opinion about this?
A: During his entire political career, he remained close to people, his constituency and state. He practised politics not for his personal gains but people’s interest and welfare was in his sharp focus. His relationship with the current Prime Minister Narendra Modi was outstanding. PM Moid says to me, “ Whenever I used to visit Delhi, I used to touch the feet of Baba (Pranab Mukherjee) to seek his blessings. Even though Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat and belonging to Opposition BJP, he used to touch his feet in private moments. Thus, there was a fantastic combination between Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Q: Other than PM Modi, his personal equations with other PMs.
A: Since he had worked under different PMs and Presidents, he had developed a common state of mind and ideology to deal with them—be it late Indira Gandhi, Rajeev Gandhi, PV Narasimha Rao, etc.
