When Late PM Manmohan Singh Said This: Prefer My Maruti 800 To Bulletproof BMW

As India mourns the sad demise of the former prime minister Manmohan Singh, Uttar Pradesh Minister of State for Social Welfare (Independent Charge) Asim Arun shared a social media post that goes vocal about his extreme humility and grounded nature.

He says that the ex-PM was so modest a human being that he preferred his Maruti Suzuki 800 over the BMW sedans of the Prime Minister’s security fleet. This in a way, reaffirmed his connection with the middle class and was a proof of his commitment to the working class.

मैं 2004 से लगभग तीन साल उनका बॉडी गार्ड रहा। एसपीजी में पीएम की सुरक्षा का सबसे अंदरुनी घेरा होता है – क्लोज़ प्रोटेक्शन टीम जिसका नेतृत्व करने का अवसर मुझे मिला था। एआईजी सीपीटी वो व्यक्ति है जो पीएम से कभी भी दूर नहीं रह सकता। यदि एक ही बॉडी गार्ड रह सकता है तो साथ यह बंदा… pic.twitter.com/468MO2Flxe

— Asim Arun (@asim_arun) December 26, 2024

The post is getting attention on X (formerly Twitter). Minister Asim Arun is an Indian Police Service officer turned politician who has been part of the Close Protection Team for almost three years. It was during his tenure as a Special Protection Group (SPG) officer. During this period, he got to interact closely with Dr Singh and got to know his humble personality in detail.

In the X post, Arun talks about the warm bond he shared with Manmohan Singh, and how he was often surprised by his humble personality. He says that Singh had a simple lifestyle and liked to maintain warm connections with the common man.

He further says that the ex-PM often wished to travel in his Maruti 800, instead of the BMW’s of the PM convoy. Even when he led the nation, Singh had a modest Maruti Suzuki 800 as his personal car! The protocols, however, demanded him to use high security German vehicles for commuting. Back in the day, a couple of BMWs and other high-security vehicles served these roles. His official car was a BMW sedan that had heavy armouring and was bulletproof.

The minister says that Dr Singh would often tell him “Asim, I don’t like travelling in this car (BMW). My car is the Maruti.” Asim Arun would then have to explain how the protocols demanded the prime minister to use high-security vehicles and how the BMW fulfilled the high security requirements, before Singh would agree. Minister Asim says that Singh would still have high gaze on the Maruti as his motorcade passed by it.

“It was as if he was reaffirming his identity as a middle-class man and his commitment to caring for the common man. While the BMW might symbolise the grandeur of the prime minister’s position, in his heart, he saw the Maruti as his car,” he added.

The post went live soon after the 92-year-old former prime minister passed away at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on December 26, 2024. In case you didn’t know, Dr Singh can be considered as one of the greatest prime ministers that India has had, and is often credited for opening the Indian economy to global competition.

This move has brought much growth to our economy. Singh served as the prime minister twice with the Congress-led UPA government- between 2004 and 2014.

He even attended the Maruti Esteem’s launch at the 1994 Delhi Auto Expo. Soon after his demise,  pictures and videos of this surfaced, which further underline his love for the brand.