There is nothing in Mr K. Natwar Singh?s past career that quite explains his obstinate clinging on to office. In his time he has been a career diplomat and a statesman; he has also been known as a person who is well read and has a lively interest in the world of letters. Yet, he fails to comprehend the damage he is doing to the party to which he swears undying loyalty and to the government from which he refuses to resign. Mr Singh has never had a strong political base. His power has grown from the unswerving allegiance he has shown to the Nehru-Gandhi family. But now, with a judicial inquiry in place and a whole range of allegations being directed at him from various quarters, Mr Singh?s position is becoming more and more vulnerable. He is not only oblivious of this, he also seems to be unaware of the slights and snubs that he is bringing upon himself by refusing to relinquish office. The latest of these is the announcement that he has been dropped from the steering committee of the Congress. (The steering committee is another name for the Congress working committee, the most important body of the party.) Only an obtuse man would fail to realize that such an announcement could not have been made except under the explicit instructions of the Congress president, Ms Sonia Gandhi. Mr Singh is no longer in favour. He may resent this but he cannot deny the reality that is staring at him in the face.

Mr Singh?s plea is that to resign now ?would look, to many people, as an admission of guilt??. This misses the point. He should have resigned as soon as the scandal broke and returned only after his name was cleared. Instead of this, Mr Singh went for an outburst of protest to declare his innocence. The more he protested, the more dubious his position became. The louder he protested, the greater the embarrassment he created for the government and for the Congress. Mr Singh needs to ask himself the question: what is he doing in the government? Is his ego more important than the reputation and the functioning of the government? The prime minister and the Congress president have both given enough indication that they would like to see Mr Singh out of office. Mr Singh has chosen, in his wisdom, not to heed these. The posture of a failed martyr ill befits a man of his stature and seniority. The sin of pride has felled better men than Mr Singh.