New Delhi
24 April 2007
The "fans" of President APJ Abdul Kalam have taken his reelection
campaign to cyberspace. A petition posted online by a resident of Pune has received
over 2.7 lakh signatures so far.
Dr Kalam's popularity has ignited the minds of others who have launched websites like
getkalamback.com, which seeks to influence the political parties to support Dr Kalam for
a second consecutive term.
The petition is the brainchild of a Sujeet Shilamkar of Pune. It seeks to "increase the
tenure" of Dr Kalam as the President of India by uniting all the fans of Dr Kalam. "We all
know that Dr APJ Abdul Kalam is completing his sucessful tenure in the month of July
2007. Come let us join our hands together for a joint effort to have him serve for more
five years as our President. We need the dynamic leadership of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam with
his vision," reads the petition.
The petition has received 2,77,753 signatures so far. A signatory to the petition, Nipun
Chadha writes, "For God's sake, our country needs him. He is not a politician, but a tru
(sic) leader." Another signatory, in turn, asks the youth to join hands with Dr Kalam "for
his vision 2020".
The people behind the getkalamback.com website say they wanted a mass campaign
that included a large section of the population and found that internet was the best
medium. "We are a few individuals who have got together and thought that leaders like
Dr Kalam matter in this country," writes Pramodh, who has collaborated with HS
Subramanya, Shravan and HC Lokesh for the website. They hope to influence the
electoral collegium comprising members of both Houses of Parliament and legislative
assemblies through their campaign.
Dr Kalam became the 11th President of India on July 25, 2002. According to Dr Kalam's
official website, his focus is on transforming India into a developed nation by 2020. He
was born on October 15, 1931 at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu. Dr Kalam's books "Wings
of Fire", "India 2020 - A Vision for the New Millennium", "My Journey" and "Ignited Minds
- Unleashing the Power within India" have become household names in India and among
the Indian nationals abroad.
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