'My Life And Tenure An Open Book': Manmohan Singh In His Last Speech as PM | WATCH

New Delhi: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh died on Thursday, December 26 at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here . The 92-year-old former Prime Minister was brought to the emergency department of the hospital at around 8:06 PM. He breathed his last at 9.51 PM. 

Manmohan Singh rose to prominence as India’s Finance Minister in the government led by PV Narasimha Rao from 1991 to 1996, implementing transformative economic reforms that reshaped the country’s financial landscape. He served as the two-term Prime Minister of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) from 2004 to 2014 and remained a member of the Rajya Sabha until early this year. Singh retired from the Rajya Sabha in April.  

In his final speech as Prime Minister on May 17, 2017, Singh stated that his tenure and life were an open book.  

What Manmohan Singh Had Said In His Last Speech as PM

My Fellow Citizens,

I address you today for the last time as Prime Minister of India.

Ten years ago, when I was entrusted with this responsibility, I entered upon it with diligence as my tool, truth as my beacon and a prayer that I might always do the right thing.

Today, as I prepare to lay down office, I am aware that well before the final judgment that we all await from the Almighty, there is judgment in the court of public opinion that all elected officials and governments are required to submit themselves to.

Fellow citizens, each one of us should respect the judgement that you have delivered. The just concluded elections have deepened the foundations of our democratic polity.

As I have said on many occasions, my life and tenure in public office are an open book. I have always tried to do my best in serving this great nation of ours.

In the last ten years, we as a country have seen many successes and achievements that we should be proud of. Today, India is a far stronger country in every respect than it was a decade ago. I give credit for these successes to all of you. However, there is still vast latent development potential in our country and we must collectively work hard to realize it.

As I leave office, my abiding memory will be the love and kindness that I have always received from you. I owe everything to this country, this great land of ours where I, an underprivileged child of Partition, was empowered enough to rise and occupy high office. It is both a debt that I will never be able to repay and a decoration that I will always wear with pride.

Friends, I am confident about the future of India. I firmly believe that the emergence of India as a major powerhouse of the evolving global economy is an idea whose time has come. Blending tradition with modernity and unity with diversity, this nation of ours can show the way forward to the world. Serving this nation has been my privilege. There is nothing more that I could ask for.

I wish the incoming government every success as it embarks on its task and pray for even greater successes for our nation.