In the death of former President APJ Abdul Kalam, India has lost one of its most popular leaders whose appeal transcended barriers of politics, region, religion and age. Born in the southern-most island of Rameswaram, he was the first President to visit the Siachen Glacier, fly in the cockpit of a supersonic fighter jet and go on a cruise in a submarine in the Indian Ocean. While it is a measure of strength of democracy that a person born in deprivation could achieve success in whatever he did, and attain the highest position in the country, it is also a measure of his greatness that he could transform the character of Rashtrapati Bhavan into a place where thousands of children could interact with the President over five years.
Experts might have reservations about him being a scientist, but the rocket engineer that he was, his stamp is clearly visible on India’s missile programme that he headed and which has equipped the defence forces with missiles that can hit targets on land, sea and air. Future generations may not remember him as a great President but he will definitely go down in history as the most popular of them all. Even after receiving the nation’s highest honour Bharat Ratna, he remained the ever-humble citizen who did not distinguish between the poor and the rich, the plebeian and the aristocrat. Kalam was a man of many parts. He did not find anything contradictory in his being a Muslim and waking up hearing MS Subbalakshmi and playing the Saraswathi Veena in his spare time. He was not a scholar steeped in the Vedic and Upanishadic traditions of the country like Dr S Radhakrishnan but he could quote from the Ramayana, the Bhagavad Gita, the Quran and the Bible with as much felicity as he could elaborate the scientific principles of a cryogenic engine. Small wonder that he did not see anyone as a Hindu or a Muslim or a Christian, for he saw every Indian as the son or the daughter of the motherland.
Kalam was a visionary who thought beyond the present. He once said that a dream was not something which someone had in sleep but one that kept someone sleepless. For him missiles and nuclear weapons were not to attack any nation but to make India safe. At a time when he could have relaxed, he never missed an opportunity to meet the youth. Even the manner of his going — while addressing a gathering of youth at Shillong — spoke eloquently about the passion of his life. He was truly a karmayogi, who practised what he preached. Few will agree that his presidency was free of blemishes. The signing of the proclamation to dismiss the elected government of Bihar while he was on a visit to Russia would remain a black spot on his tenure. But he also proved that he was not a rubber stamp.
If Kalam found that a Bill did not deserve his assent, he had the courage to send it back for reconsideration. If it was sent again, he gave the assent for he also knew the limitations of his office. He had a clear understanding of the limits of the President’s power. As President, Kalam discharged his duties as one who commanded the support and goodwill of the whole nation. He never allowed anyone close to him — relative or a friend — to exploit his office for their advantage. In short, his conduct before, during and after he held the highest office was exemplary. That is why his death has grieved the whole nation. The best homage to APJ Abdul Kalam would be to dedicate ourselves to the cause of national unity and progress.