Late President Pranab Mukherjee’s latest book The Presidential Years: 2012-17 was launched at a virtual session of Kitaab by panelists British politician and economist, Lord Meghnad Desai, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, economist and former top civil servant, and Sharmistha Mukherjee, politician and daughter of Lt President, organised by Prabha Khaitan Foundation and presented by Shree Cement. Malika Varma of Ehsaas Woman of Kolkata introduced the session which was conducted by journalist, director and film critic, Ratnottama Sengupta.
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A live session of Kitaab where Lt President Pranab Mukherjees last book The Presidential Years was launched by Sharmistha Mukherjee, Lord Meghnad Desai and Montek Singh Ahluwalia
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Recounting her experience as a resident of iconic Rashtrapati Bhavan with her father Lt Pranab Mukherjee, Sharmistha said, “It was a great honour and opportunity to be the 13th family at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. My father’s love and passion was history and for him every corner of Rashtrapati Bhavan was full of history; every stone told a story. So one of the first things he did was to document all the art works and renovate the priceless library and created a museum for Rashtrapati Bhavan by collaborating with curators, historians, art historians, librarians – restoring the place to its full glory. It was a great opportunity to relive the rich history of the place.”
“He (Lt Pranab Mukherjee) also opened up a large section to Bhavan to the people of India and made it people-friendly by starting the artist-residential centre where he would invite the scholars, the artistes, the writers, the young innovators and scientists so that they could also come and become a part of the history – learn, understand and appreciate the place,” she added.
Lord Meghnad Desai joined in from London, said, “The arrival of BJP in 2014 was the biggest political earthquake. Pranab Mukherjee had a career spanning 48-years and when he became the President he had a novice Prime Minister who had a lot to learn and he could guide the prime minister because he had already been with one in his tenure and he carried it out beautifully. In the annals of Indian presidency you don’t have anyone with that range of contacts and cabinet positio