Dr. Kalam was a strong promoter of religious tolerance and interfaith conversations. “For great men, religion is a way of making friends; small people make religion a fighting tool.” His opinion was that the answers to India’s countless issues lay in the “dialogues and cooperation” among our religious, social and political leaders.
He was a very humble human being and refused to take any kind of VVIP treatment. In a function at IIT-BHU Varanasi, where he was the chief guest, Kalam refused to accept the chair specially arranged for him. Of the five chairs arranged on the stage, the bigger one was for Kalam in the centre and the other four were for top university officials. Dr. Kalam humbly offered the seat to the vice chancellor, which the VC would not accept.
During his period as the President of India, Kalam made it a mission to meet as many young people as possible one-to-one. He was able to meet almost 500,000 during his tenure, a record making number!
When he left the office in 2007, he was conferred the loving title of “Kalam Chacha” as he received hundreds of emails a day from young people inspired by his encouragement to “dream, dream, dream!” He reportedly had replied in person to nearly all of them.
As the president, Dr. Kalam’s most remarkable quality was accessibility and openness. He added value and dignity to the president’s office.
No wonder Dr. Kalam became an absolute favourite among people!
Picture Credit : Google