A mother who lost her son and a young man who has lost his brother — both in the line of duty. The chief of the Indian army. Cabinet ministers who make and break policies. Political heavy-weights. Writers of fiction. All of them had a lot of questions.
Once the President had outlined his vision of an India truly empowered, with its urban and rural populations able to rightfully demand transparency and infrastructure, he opened himself to a range of questions. And never once, when a bereaved mother asked how she could reconcile herself to the loss of a son just because he stood up for what’s right, when a member of the audience demanded to know whether the President of India needs to be empowered after the Supreme Court’s stiff words on the imposition of President’s rule in Bihar, when another wanted to know what would stream through his mind if asked to swear in “tainted” ministers, never once did he refuse to address the issue head on.
And through it all, he stuck to a theme: that we must understand every situation, difficult or bitter, and learn from it. That is India Empowered.
“What are you doing to ensure that no mother will face a situation like mine,” asked the mother of Manjunath, the IOC officer who was killed in Uttar Pradesh for trying to stop adulteration in petrol. The parents of the late IIM graduate were special invitees at the Express conclave. “Why would someone, like my son, die at the age of 27 for merely doing his duty?” she wondered.
“Manjunath had gained his righteousness from his home and his death should not discourage us,” the President said. “We must not be defeated by the challenges, but must defeat the challenges.”
Then the topic shifted to politics. “How do you react when you are asked to include tainted people in the ministry,” asked television producer Nalini Singh. “There are people who are involved in cases that originated from different reasons. I will watch,” the President said. But he was candid. This practice is “not good”.
Would a technology-centric approach work in a hierarchical society like India’s? Kalam thinks it may be difficult but definitely possible. “Hierarchy in society is no longer valid. Mission mode operations have succeeded irrespective of the limitations of the society — the Green Revolution came about successfully; and then the White Revolution happened. And in recent times, we are witnessing an IT revolution. However, what we need to address immediately is primary education,” he said.
Is politics a deterrence to development? “Developmental politics is needed. The Bharat Nirman programme of the prime minister is a political decision and there is nothing bad about politics as such.”
Well, in that case, queried Amar Singh of the Samajwadi Party, why did Chandrababu Naidu lose the elections in Andhra Pradesh? “Development has to cover all sections of the society. It cannot be restricted merely to one village,” the President said, and added for effect: “I hope you got the point about the village.” The extraordinary developmental work in the village of UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav has been in the news recently, nobody could have missed which village the President was referring to.
Then came health. How can India ensure that all its citizens have access to health care? Kalam emphasised his well-known thesis of contributory health insurance coverage in which the government and the beneficiary share the cost. “I am marketing this approach since it was found successful in Karnataka,” he said.
Then it was the turn of the Army chief to ask question to the supreme commander of the armed forces. “What do you think is the significant contribution of armed forces towards national building and what is the road ahead?”
The President felt that besides securing the nation’s border, the jawans were concerned about the people back home, in their villages. “When I interacted with the men, they were more concerned about the problems of their village than their own,” Kalam said. 
The President suggested it is time to tap the energy and discipline of lakhs of retired personnel for nation building. “If they can be used properly, the impact will be tremendous for the country.”
What would the President like to be done so that no more Manjunaths and Satyendra Dubeys are killed, asked Ambika Soni, general secretary of the Congress. “Transparency in the functioning of the government is the key to everything. Instead of mourning the deaths of these honest people, we must take up the challenge and face the risks. Every challenge involves a risk also.”
To end it all, it was back to politics again. “How does the President view his decision to dissolve the Bihar assembly given the criticism of it by the SC later on?”
“In a democratic system, hundreds of decisions are taken everyday,” said the occupant of Rashtrapati Bhavan. “Every decision and the reaction to it become an experience that guides the future. It is a process of continuous learning. By taking a decision you may invite problems, but a decision will have to be taken nevertheless.”
“Problems should not defeat me” the President said, “I should defeat the problems and succeed.”
A mother who lost her son and a young man who has lost his brother — both in the line of duty. The chief of the Indian army. Cabinet ministers who make and break policies. Political heavy-weights. Writers of fiction. All of them had a lot of questions.