One was always in awe of his oratory and parliamentary skills.

In private chats and official conversations, Vajpayee had a sense of humour, sometimes at himself. A wisecrack would ease a tense atmosphere. He recognised early that parliamentary management and governance were not as much about winning arguments as about winning friends. That’s why he could manage a coalition of disparate parties while never losing focus on economic policies or politics.

P V Narasimha Rao walked away from nuclear tests, fearing international criticism. He was paranoid about what had happened in 1991 when international organisations pressured India. We, in the department of economic affairs, were asked to prepare a note on economic consequences of the tests during Rao’s time and Vajpayee’s term. But Vajpayee was fearless and initially there were hiccups but later, the Jaswant Singh-Strobe Talbott dialogue helped normalise relations with the US.

It was a shrewd calculation that the US would bark but not bite. Vajpayee felt the lure of a growing Indian market was attractive and forces of industry would prevent big powers from imposing sanctions. He backed this with progressive liberalisation with opening up of financial markets, FDI and the telecom sector.

He created the telecom revolution. He inherited a huge mess. His minister Jagmohan suggested invoking bank guarantees. He asked me what would happen and I told him companies would go bust, banks would take a hit but telecom would be set back by decades.

He had the vision to see telecom would be a launchpad. He took the risk, the telecom minister was changed and the SC agreed to revenue sharing. That’s how telecom companies were saved. There was a moral hazard but as long as the intent was clear — public good — he was willing to take the risk.

He is credited with the national highways programme, which he announced at an industry event. Three months later, he told me, “Arey maharaj, ghoshna to ho gayi hai ab thoda road bana bhi dijiye.” Money from cess was inadequate and a non-lapsable fund was created, which allowed for greater debt. He introduced Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, the beginning of the rural roads programme. Again, he went against conventional wisdom. He faced constant criticism of going too fast on liberalisation and FDI. A classic example was the view he took on FDI. I had prepared a report for the Planning Commission and when I took the draft to him, he told me to keep retail out. “Usme kathinai hogi, usko rehne dijiye,” he said, realising this could jeopardise larger goals. He did not see the Economic Advisory Council on trade and industry as a collegial drawing room club. He sent me to I G Patel because he was apprehensive that he (Patel) may not agree to head it, having turned down an offer to become a minister. IG happily accepted.

Once he invited diaspora in telecom and technology such as Kanwal Rekhi, Vinod Khosla and Sabeer Bhatia and asked for inputs. One of them suggested a ministry and Vajpayee had a laugh and said, “Let’s keep the ministry away.” But he ensured all ideas were reflected in the policy.

More often than not, carrying your own people is more difficult than dealing with outsiders. He tried to balance contradictions but never gave up on the objective, which was greater competition, greater productivity, greater opening up of the economy. He mainstreamed BJP. Economic policies had a big role to play in this image makeover.

The writer is chairman, 15th Finance Commission

