A Plain, Blunt Man : the Essential Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was one of India’s most prominent founding fathers. Aifelong Gandhian and Congressman, he is
remembered today for the major role he played in the country’s struggle for freedom, and during the tumultuous early years of
the newly independent nation, the sagacity with which he dealt with the accession and integration of the princely states with the
Indian union, the banning of the RSS after the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, and the firmness with which he managed the
breakdown ofaw and order after Partition. In the years after his death in 1950, his stature has only grown and many parties have
tried to co-opt him to serve their political ends.
A man of unimpeachable integrity and firm convictions, Sardar Patel never shied away from stating his views on any issue no
matter how contentious. This anthology brings together his key writing and thinking on a variety of subjects including the
accession of princely kingdoms, Indian secularism, the need to protect the interests of minorities, his differences with Nehru, his
reverence for Gandhi, his distaste for sectarian politics, his belief in the idea of a plural India, and much else besides.