The journey of Prime Minister designate Narendra Modi of the rightist Bharatiya Janata Party was most inspiring to all those younger generation who wanted to cherish their “Modern & Robust India dream, worth emulating.
Narendra Modi was born on 17 September 1950 into a family of grocers belonging to the backward Ghanchi-Teli (oil-presser) community, in Vadnagar in Mehsana district of what was then Bombay Presidency and now the Gujarat state.
He was the third of six children of lower middle class of Damodardas Mulchand Modi and Heeraben couple.
He, in fact, has begun his childhood journey helping his father sell tea at Vadnagar railway station as a teenager he ran a tea stall with his brother near a bus terminus.
He completed his schooling in Vadnagar, where a teacher described him as being an average student, but a keen debater who had an interest in theatre. That interest has influenced how he now projects himself in politics.
Modi’s parents arranged his marriage as a child, in keeping with the traditions of the Ghanchi caste.
He was engaged at the age of 13 to Jashodaben Chimanlal and the couple were married by the time he was 18. They spent very little time together and were soon estranged because Modi decided to pursue an itinerant life. However as per Modi’s biographer Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, the marriage was never consummated.
Modi formally joined the RSS after the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war. He was sent to jail during dark days of emergency in 1975 under of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
However, Modi went underground in Gujarat, occasionally disguised, and printed and sent booklets against the central government.
He also participated in the movement against the Emergency under Jayaprakash Narayan.
The RSS assigned Modi to the BJP in 1985. While Shankarsingh Vaghela and Keshubhai Patel were the established names in the Gujarat, BJP, Modi rose to prominence after organising Murli Manohar Joshi’s Kanyakumari-Srinagar Ekta yatra (Journey for Unity) in 1991.
In 1988, Modi was elected as organizing secretary of BJP’s Gujarat unit, marking his formal entry into mainstream politics. As secretary, his electoral strategy was central to BJP’s victory in the 1995 state elections.
Since then, he never looked back and ensure his party win three consecutive terms, in spite of those unsavoury post Godhra incidents which painted him as villain to minorities,
He was formally nominated as Prime Ministerial candidate by the party’s think-tank though few of the party seniors like L K Advani expressed his displeasure and some of till then allies like Nitish Kumar of JD (U).
However, many, including the legal luminaries like Kapil Sibbals, quite often ridiculed him as ‘chai wala’ now going to be the 13th Prime Minister of independent India. Shouldn’t the biggest democracies like India feel proud of making their own ‘son of the soil’ like Narendra Modi, as the Prime Minister? Instead of ‘acceptable’ foreign ‘bahu’!
Some Interesting Facts about Narendra Modi :
1) New Delhi: Narendra Modi, the man who used to sell tea at Vadnagar Railway station in Gujarat, can well become the 14th Prime Minister of India.
2) All exit poll surveys have predicted a comfortable majority for Modi led NDA in 16th Lok Sabha.
3) Modi as a young NCC cadet in his childhood
The final results will be out on 16th May but the BJP and Modi supporters have already started celebrating their exit-poll based victory.
4) The journey of Narendra Modi from ‘Vadnagar’ to the likely occupant of 7, Race Course Road has been truly remarkable.
5) Modi has seen many ups and downs in his life and career.
6) Before taking over as Chief Minister of Gujarat in 2001, Modi was a purely organizational man who had never contested any elections.
7) But once he was anointed as the Chief Minister of Gujarat, there was no looking back for Modi and he won three state elections in a row.
8) Modi with Imran Khan
Nobody can explain what exactly makes him so popular among hoi-polloi. At the same time, he is widely known as a person who wears his heart on his sleeves.
9) Even his opponents admire him for his bold and fearless stand on sensitive issues that can dent his carefully crafted image of a no-nonsense man.
10) No other Chief Minister in India evokes as much hatred as Narendra Modi but at the same time no other Chief Minister commands as much respect as Narendra Modi.
11) The hatred for Modi is community specific but he is admired across communities and his popularity transcends all barriers of caste, community and religion.
12) Narendra Modi is a patriot since childhood. During Indo-Pak war of 1965, Modi, as a 15 year old boy, volunteered to serve the soldiers in transit at the railway stations.
13) Similarly, in 1967 at an age of 17 years, he served the flood affected people of Gujarat.
14) Modi was born in an OBC family of grocers in Vadnagar of Gujarat.
15) Modi wanted to become a sanyasi when he was a child. In fact, he was always fascinated with Sadhus, different forms of worship and meditation.
16) Modi posing as Sikh during emergency of 1975
He ran away from home after completing his school education.
17) He visited many places including Ramkrishna Ashram of Belur in West Bengal.
18) Modi with film star Manoj Kumar
Finally, he reached Himalayas and wandered aimlessly and stayed with unknown but yogic Sadhus for months.
19) After two years of wandering in Himalayas without money and with two pairs of clothes, he suddenly decided to give up ‘Sanyas’ life and returned home.
20) After returning from Himalayas, Modi ran a tea stall with his brother at the State Transport Office in Ahmedabad.
21) Modi sold tea for many years. That was the time when Modi learnt what hardship really meant. It made him more determined and resolute in his approach towards life.
22) Narendra Modi is very particular about his appearance in public. He prefers trimmed beard and hair.
23) As for his clothes, his favourite cloth store used to be Jade Blue of Ahmedabad. He ensures that he looks elegant whenever he moves out.
24) Narendra Modi has done a three-month course in US on public relations and image management. This could be one reason why he has succeeded in positioning himself as one of the most affable and sought after politicians in India.
25) Modi with his mother
Narendra Modi adores his mother and never forgets to take her blessings whenever he undertakes any new initiative- political or otherwise.
26) In fact, she is his only closest relation. He has got all traditional virtues of an Indian man. He is a teetotaler. He doesn’t drink, doesn’t smoke. He is a complete vegetarian. In nut-shell, he is miles away from even minor vices.
27) Women all over India and cutting over age bracket adore Modi. In his home state, he is seen as a sex symbol among women.
28) A close look at his public meetings makes it abundantly clear that women outnumber men among attendees.
29) Analysts say this is mainly because of his emperor like image exuding absolute power and authority.
30) Modi with Kushabhau Thakre
Modi is a prolific writer and poet.He writes in Gujarati language and his favourite topics include life and teachings of Hindutva icons.
31) Narendra Modi is a big fan of Swami Vivekananda.
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