He just survived a barrage of election manifestos and innovations in rhetoric. Politicians begged him and ripped their heart out to show his place there. Now they will forget him. Only to remember five years later. It's not easy being a Common Man. But defining him is even tougher
The Congress Party has come a long way from the Indira Gandhi era, when Aam
Aadmi meant a member of the weaker sections of the society: Dalits, tribals and so on. Under Dr. Manmohan Singh, the Common Man represents anybody who is below upper middle class. In a market economy, he must be cared for by both the government and the private sector.
(This story appears in the 05 June, 2009 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)