Oops, she did it again! Here’s why former president Pratibha Patil failed to live up to her predecessor late Dr APJ Abdul Kalam’s popularity

Former President APJ Abdul Kalam, who passed away on Monday evening, probably is one of those few personalities who brought an entire nation together in his mourning. But while this beloved president is fondly remembered as ‘People’s President’, his successor, the twelfth President of India, Pratibha Patil, has failed to come anywhere close to the popularity of late Dr. Kalam.

She in fact courted so many controversies that she is probably one of the most little liked Presidents of India. So when we decided to dig up a bit about this former President, here’s what we found – a query on the question-and-answer website Quora, asking why former President Pratibha Patil is widely hated and disrespected.

The query has received over answers, most of which compares her tenure as the President with that of her predecessor, late Dr Kalam. Here are some of the most interesting responses that the query got.

“… Ms. Patil used Indian government's money to take useless foreign trips with her grandchildren. When they are on travel, Presidents are supposed to meet foreign dignitaries and improve diplomatic relationships & cultural exchange. In her foreign trips, her huge extended family travels at taxpayer's expense to tourist spots. 22 trips and $40 million in travel expenses. Even when she traveled in India, she seemed to like beaches more than people,” said Balaji Viswanathan, who was the first to reply to the query.

He added, “Most importantly, during her Presidency of five years, she has precisely done nothing. In contrast, her predecessor Dr. Kalam was widely respected and took bold political moves to keep the government on track. Paired with a toothless Prime Minister, she proved doubly disastrous for India…Her image had already been tarnished even before she took the role. Her predecessor is Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam who is very highly revered among Indians. When Mrs. Patil became president instead of him, needless to say, Indian citizens did not welcome the decision. And then her actions further fueled their anger.,”

Another reader listed out controversies that involved her, some of which include allegations of her shielding her brother GN Patil in the Vishram Patil murder in 2005. Further the reader listed out scams allegedly involving this former President. Besides, she is also accused of not doing anything for sports despite being a former table-tennis champion herself.

“There is absolutely no question over whether she ever deserved the Presidency. She's a shockingly unimpressive personality with no aspirations, values, virtues or characteristics. There is absolutely nothing about her that would make you want to look at her twice. She has never done anything of value and arrived in the Presidential House by pure luck. For god's sake, she can't even speak for thirty seconds without a script in front of her,” wrote another respondent who chose to remain anonymous.

Readers also take a dig at her foreign trips and exorbitant holidays with her family(that are supposed to forge relationships with other world leaders) and compared her to the simple life that former President Dr Kalam lived during his tenure.

“We had Dr. Abdul Kalaam as the President before Prathiba Patil was sworn in. In Dr. Kalam, we found a president who flew a supersonic fighter jet, dived down the ocean in a submarine, met the soldiers at the world's highest battlefield… and connected so well with people. But when Ms. Patil became the president she tried doing many of the above things to sound like her predecessor but Dr. Kalam was the epitome of simplicity and a man of his actions which she was not, we hadn't seen Dr. Kalam waste the tax we pay on unnecessary foreign trips or holidays to Goa nor did he get himself prime property in any state,” posted another reader Balakrishnan Vasudevan in his response.

Well, it seems that former President Patil still hasn’t learned her lesson from her predecessor. While late Dr Kalam believed in simplicity, a report suggested that Patil has demanded the Centre to allow her to use official vehicle as well as get fuel allowance. As per the rules, a former President is entitled to either an official vehicle or fuel allowance. Well, all we can say is Dr Kalam has set a standard that is difficult to match but like he says—“Be more dedicated to making solid achievements than in running after swift but synthetic happiness”

Image Credit: Quora.com