When warning by friends made Kalam take u-turn on his visit to RSS headquarters, narrates new book
New Delhi, Oct 15: Former president A P J Abdul Kalam had once cancelled his visit to the RSS headquarters in Nagpur for an event after friends warned him that he would be labelled as an "RSS sympathiser", claims a new book "Kalam: The Untold Story".
The book, written by Kalam's private secretary R K Prasad, claimed that the flip flop by Kalam on the visit "annoyed the RSS leadership" as they had made the arrangements and planned for publicity around his visit.
Kalam eventually did visit the RSS headquarters and addressed the participants at an in-house training a month after the date that he had agreed on initially. However, none of the top brass of the organisation turned up.
October 15, 2022, marks the 91st birth anniversary of Kalam. An aerospace scientist who served as the president of India from 2002 to 2007, he was widely considered the 'People's President'.
"In May 2014, our office received an invitation from the RSS general secretary Ram Madhav. They wanted the former president to address young RSS volunteers at a training camp in the presence of the RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat," writes Prasad, who has served Kalam from 1995 when he was scientific adviser to the then defence minister until his death in 2015.
"The camp would conclude on June 12, and they wished to have Kalam visit before that on a date convenient to him. Ram Madhav later visited Kalam, and it was decided that the former president would attend the programme at the RSS headquarters on the concluding day of the training camp," he added.
However, as a result of inputs and advice received from some of his friends, Kalam changed his mind.
According to Prasad, he was warned by them that a visit to the RSS headquarters would get him labelled as "RSS sympathizer" and "lead to a possible misuse of his name by the organisation".
Not willing to go after the stern advice from his friends, as per the book, Kalam asked Prasad to provide an excuse to the organisation and to say that he would be glad to pay a visit there five days prior to the said event.
"I really had a rough time talking with the contact person at the RSS. The leadership got really annoyed at this sudden backing out because they had made arrangements and planned for publicity around his visit," he added.
Notably, former president Pranab Mukherjee attended a valedictory session of the "Tritiya Varsh Varg" or the Third Year Course organised by the RSS at its headquarters in June 2018 despite criticism by the Congress and his family members.
Published by Bloomsbury, "Kalam: The Untold Story" throws new light on Kalam's relationship with political leaders, including those at the highest level, and the truth behind some of the controversies.
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India, Vietnam elevate ties to enhanced comprehensive strategic partnership; set USD 25 bn
New Delhi (PTI): India and Vietnam on Wednesday elevated their ties to an enhanced comprehensive strategic partnership and set a USD 25 billion annual trade target by 2030 as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Vietnamese President To Lam held talks focusing on expanding bilateral ties in areas of trade, defence, and critical minerals in the face of increasing geopolitical upheavals.
Following the Modi-Lam meeting, the two sides signed as many as 13 agreements which will provide for deeper two ways engagements in a range of areas including digital payments, rare earth minerals, pharmaceuticals, education, banking and culture.
Modi and Lam also deliberated on the situation in the Indo-Pacific amid China's increasing assertiveness in the region, and agreed to continue to contribute to the rule-of-law, peace, stability, and prosperity.
It is understood that China's growing military muscle-flexing in the South China Sea also figured in the delegation-level talks between the two sides.
Elected as president earlier this month, Lam began his first state visit to India on Tuesday, leading a high-level delegation for a three-day trip.
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"A decade ago, Vietnam became India's first comprehensive strategic partner in ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) . Since then, our relations have made rapid and comprehensive progress," Modi said in his media statement.
"Building on this strong foundation, today we are elevating our relations to the level of Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. We will now advance our partnership to even higher goals," he said.
"Our cooperation will reach new levels in every area ' culture, connectivity, and capacity building, as well as security, sustainability, and supply chain resilience," Modi added.
He noted that the bilateral trade between India and Vietnam has doubled in the last decade to reach USD 16 billion and that the target now is to increase it to USD 25 billion by 2030.
Modi also cited a plethora of agreements signed between the two countries to emphasis that the economic engagement is expected to witness a significant upswing going forward.
"The MoU between our drug authorities will now increase access to Indian medicines in Vietnam. Exports of Indian agricultural, fisheries, and animal products to Vietnam are also set to become easier. Very soon, Vietnam will taste India's grapes and pomegranates," he said.
The two sides also agreed to update the India-ASEAN trade agreement by the end of this year.
"This will provide a new impetus to trade and investment between India and all ASEAN countries. New initiatives in critical minerals, rare earths, and energy cooperation will ensure the economic security and supply chain resilience of both countries," Modi said.
"To boost financial connectivity, we have today decided to enhance cooperation between our central banks. India's UPI and Vietnam's fast payment systems will soon be linked. Furthermore, we are strengthening state-to-state and city-to-city cooperation between the two countries," he noted.
Modi said India is grateful to Vietnam for its strong condemnation of the Pahalgam terrorist attack and standing with India in its fight against terrorism.
"In this era of global turmoil and economic challenges, thanks to their talent, good governance, and economic reforms, India and Vietnam are emerging as the world's fastest-growing economies," he said.
"Now, through our enhanced strategic partnership, we will support each other's rapid growth. As the Buddha's teachings say, 'If you light a lamp for someone else, it also illuminates your own path'," Modi said.
He also described Vietnam a a key pillar of India's Act East Policy and Vision Ocean.
"In the Indo-Pacific region as well, we share a common outlook. Through our strengthening defence and security cooperation, we will continue to contribute to the rule-of-law, peace, stability, and prosperity," he said.
The prime minister said India will broaden its relations with ASEAN with Vietnam's cooperation.
In his remarks, Lam said both sides agreed to deepen political trust and elevate security cooperation.
Last year, the two sides inked a pact to set up a framework for submarine search, rescue and support mechanism. They also signed a letter of intent (LoI) to strengthen bilateral defence industry collaboration.
