Won’t play the role of mediator,says Governor

“The Governor is not a mediator. As it is I am doing a lot more than what I should be doing. If the two are willing to sit together,it is fine for us,” the Governor said while talking exclusively to The Sunday Express at Raj Bhavan,on the sidelines of releasing a book penned by former cabinet minister K Natwar Singh.

The book,Walking With The Lions: Tales From A Diplomatic Past,is an insight into on the lives of VVIPs. The book has been earlier released in Delhi by Vice-President Hamid Ansari and in Chandigarh by Governor Shivraj Patil. It has several anecdotes unknown to many,during Singh’s tenure as the confidante to former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi and during his term as the external affairs minister.

Singh read out excerpts from his book where he talks about the rendezvous of Chandra Swami with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and how Swami managed to not only impress Thatcher but also made her wear an armlet during their next meet. He also narrated the part about how Shankar Dayal Sharma refused to be the Prime Minister after Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated and P V Narsimha Rao was the next choice.

Narayanan,in his speech said that he liked the way the book has been divided into interesting chapters. “The author skilfully strings together several distinct episodes during different period of his diplomatic career,” he said,adding,“This book must not only be read but has to be savoured by subsequent readings.”

The Governor also recalled times when he met Singh as a civil servant and also suggested that there should have been more details in some areas like the near collapse of a summit because of a tussle between the Iraqi and Iranian delegations.