The former prime minister was speaking at an event to mark the 100th birth anniversary of IK Gujral, who was India’s prime minister in1997-98.

“When the sad event of 1984 took place, Gujral ji on that very sad evening went to the then Home Minister PV Narasimha Rao and said to him that the situation is so grave that it is necessary for the government to call the army at the earliest. If that advice would have been heeded perhaps the massacre that took place in 1984 could have been avoided,” said Manmohan Singh.

Nearly 3,000 were killed in riots that broke out after the assassination of former prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1984 by her Sikh bodyguards. Several Congress leaders have been accused of leading mobs targeting Sikhs.

Narasimha Rao went on to become prime minister of a Congress government in 1991-96. Manmohan Singh, as finance minister at the time, is credited with bringing major economic reforms.

Dr Singh also shared that he grew closer to Mr Gujral after the Emergency of 1975-77. “He was the minister of Information and Broadcasting and he had problems with some aspects of the management of emergency and then he was removed to the planning commission as minister of state. I was then an economic advisor with the ministry of finance… Thereafter our relationship grew”, Dr Singh said.

IK Gujral was Minister of Information and Broadcasting in June 1975, when then prime minister Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency, a period during which fundamental rights were severely restricted and several opposition leaders were jailed. Mr Gujral, who was prime minister for about a year, crafted the ”Gujral Doctrine” for maintaining good relations with neighbours. He died in 2012 at 92.

Former President Pranab Mukherjee, who also spoke at the event, regretted the then Congress leadership’s decision to withdraw support from IK Gujral-led United Front government in 1998. He said if such a decision had not been taken, a BJP government would have been deferred.

(With inputs from ANI