AICC national coordinator Sridhar Ramaswamy pens a fond note for senior party leader P Chidambaram on his 80th birthday.
"From a young MBA student at Harvard Business School in the 1960s to a Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Commerce and then Ministry of Personnel in the Rajiv Gandhi Government in the mid 1980s to Commerce Minister in Narasimha Rao Government in early 90s to the Finance Minister in the UF Government in mid 90s to the Finance Minister and Home Minister in Manmohan Singh Government in UPA 1 and 2 from 2004-14 to an important role now in Opposition he has played a stellar role in India's Growth story over the last 40 plus years.
"As a 12 year old in 1997 when I first saw him on TV presenting the Dream Budget, I was simply mesmerised by the clarity of thought and vision he brought and he stood out from the rest of the political class at that time. Ever since then he has been a massive inspiration for many people like me and learnt a lot from him so much so I ended up studying Commerce and Finance thanks to him.
"Still can't believe he's 80 after remembering him much younger and a star 3 decades ago. My brief interactions with him have always been cordial and he is always very courteous and pleasant when he spoke to me which meant a lot to me. A fine leader and 'Intellectual Par Excellence'
"Here is wishing @PChidambaram_IN a very very Happy Birthday and may you continue inspiring as always sir."
