Gowda Slips And Sleeps On First Trip Abroad

All the other heads of state and government present Malaysia (whose Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mahomed has been aiming for the slot of Third World Leader), Egypt, Algeria, Jamaica, Senegal clearly saw what was going on. As the faces of the Indian delegation turned purple, it was decided that Gowda make an early exit and rest his fatigue.

The same thing happened on the evening the Prime Minister met a joint Indian business delegation led by CIIs Shekhar Datta. This time, too, the PM nodded off to sleep as government and business sought to engage themselves in strategies on how best to conquer Africa. Blessedly, no foreigners were present on this occasion.

 

Traveling with Indias 13th prime minister is certainly not for the squeamish or the urbane. This is his first brush with international diplomacy, but whether its on board Air India One, the multilateral sessions in Harare, or at the exclusive retreat at Victoria Falls, Gowda shoots straight from the hip.

He tells Indian journalists en route to Harare that he intends to work the summit in his trademark khadi lungi and kurta. If Mahatma Gandhi could wear these clothes, I can also do it, he jokes, then slings an arm around a journalists shoulder. Its obviously a habit. All the worlds a stage, and Gowda seems its first actor.

Theres little doubt hes a touchy-feely man, someone who loves people and doesnt hide it. Unlike Rajiv Gandhi, he couldnt care less about the small touches that reek of class in the diplomatic stratosphere; unlike an intellectualising Narasimha Rao, he is direct, affable and earthy, not afraid to pull a smelly Kannada proverb if the occasion demands it.

Then the son of the soil walks out of Air India One, as it touches down in Harare in the middle of last Saturday afternoon, in a crumpled kurta. Zimbabwean President Robert Gabriel Mugabe, about 75 years old, is a neat, spotless study in contrast. Over the next three days, as diplomatic success is tabulated against sartorial content, Gowdas star seems to be dangerously dipping.

But the prime minister is also a quick learner and in subsequent sessions with the leaders of the G-15, in open sessions and closed meetings, he seems to score a few quick points. Diplomats said he and Malaysias Mahathir, in Harare and in Victoria, are seen to be playing the most active roles in formulating a final joint communique