Former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh dies aged 92
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Manmohan Singh, the former Indian prime minister who governed the South Asian country for two terms, has died, aged 92. Singh was admitted to New Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences late Thursday after his health deteriorated due to “sudden loss of consciousness at home,” the hospital said in a statement.
He was “being treated for age-related medical conditions,” the statement added. Singh is credited with steering India to unprecedented economic growth and lifting hundreds of millions out of dire poverty. He went on to serve a rare second term. Prime minister Narendra Modi said: “India mourns the loss of one of its most distinguished leaders, Dr. Manmohan Singh Ji.”.
A mild-mannered technocrat, Singh became one of India’s longest-serving prime ministers for 10 years and earned a reputation as a man of great personal integrity. He was chosen to fill the role in 2004 by Sonia Gandhi, the widow of assassinated Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
But his sterling image was tainted by allegations of corruption against his ministers. Singh was elected to a second term as prime minister from 2009-2014 that was clouded by financial scandals and corruption charges over the organization of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
This led to the Congress Party’s crushing defeat in the 2014 national election by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party under the leadership of Narendra Modi.Singh adopted a low profile after relinquishing the post of prime minister. This is a breaking news story, more to come...
