Namo Mantra of Narendra Modi

Efficient Leadership

Having become a synonym of success, when Narendra Damodar Das Modi came into power as Gujarat’s chief minister on 7th October, 2001, no one had the slightest idea that not for a second or third time, Modi would get the chance of taking the oath for a fourth time. It is the result of his efficient leadership and futuristic vision, that no matter how much opposition he faces from inside his party, Modi always manages to take everyone along. He was opposed, his rivals came forward aggressively against him, but all of them failed. There was no one in the government or in the BJP whose opposition was vociferous. Those who came up in opposition in BJP were those who had forgotten that Modi was the one whom the people had elected as their leader, and no one else. Modi neither represented the government nor the party. If he is in power, it is solely because of him and his works. He never gives up to the opposition against him but calms it down and brings the rivals to his ell. Modi says that when people throw stones at him, he uses those stones to build a ladder which helps him to reach great heights and wave the flags of victory. But it would not be wrong to say that on one hand while Modi was being opposed, on the other, during 2001 to 2012, there wasn’t as much opposition against Modi in Gujarat as it was in the other states and the people who disagreed with him started agreeing with him on his works. Modi is the only person who came into power because of his work, because otherwise, in Indian history, it has always been parties that have won elections, never a person.

In 2002, when Modi was taking the oath of becoming a chief minister for the second time, the then-Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Bajpayee had also arrived in his oath ceremony. Seeing the overflowing crowd in Sardar Stadium of Ahmedabad, he said that this is a victory of democracy and it cannot be put into words, the way that the people have come to see their beloved leader. Atal Ji has not been able to forget the view that he saw that day, instead he always praises Modi for being a visionary that sees the future and puts his all into making it a reality. Modi isn’t popular just among the masses of India but he has a strong following from the people of other countries as well. People want to listen to his ideas of development. On 6th February, 2013 when Modi was invited to give a speech in Delhi in Sri Ram College of Commerce, the auditorium was packed with students. The students were listening to his each and every word with great enthusiasm. Modi cracked a few jokes in between to keep the atmosphere light. From this we can say that Modi is the kind of person who knows to capture people just with his words. Modi took the oath. Expanded the cabinet and completed the term of five years. In all of the meetings held at the chief minister’s residence, Modi always talked of the betterment and development of the state. The people who know him say that Modi doesn’t care about the negative thoughts at all. If anyone approaches Modi, who works on the policy of ‘where there is a will, there is a way’, with a problem that cannot be solved, to him Modi has a simple answer that there is not a single task in this world that is impossible. Do your work and if you have trouble doing it, ask for suggestions. And if you fail still, then change your way of working, but complete your work once you have undertaken it. He has always prioritized those who believe in cooperation with others and think of development. For him, a person’s power and position don’t matter, but his thoughts do. It doesn’t matter to him whether a person is rich or poor but what he thinks. Thoughts could be of Modi himself or those of a big and powerful industrialist but if the thoughts of a cobbler are more meaningful then they must be heard. For him those, whose thoughts were right, mattered more. Modi did not get the chief minister’s title in heritage but with hard work and struggles and we always know the value of those things that we get after severe struggles and the same happened to Modi. Modi has reached this position with his hard work. That’s why his tendency to think is from the root level. He believes that when one person can rise from the grounds and touch the skies, then that can happen to anyone that means everyone has the abilities to touch the heights, what’s required is to identify his skills and to nurture them in the right direction, and one day he will also become an asset.

While discussing Modi’s efficient leadership skills, one reporter told the author of this book that often journalists would ask strange questions from Modi. When the voice of his rivals was getting stronger in Gujarat, then the media wanted that Modi should speak openly on this, but why would Modi care to speak on any of it. He always feels that when the rivals run out of methods and reasons to oppose him then they would calm down themselves. This is a democracy; opposition and favor are a constant. Something similar is exactly what happened to him in the parliamentary elections this time, while there was a wave of restlessness from Gujarat to Delhi about the elections, Narendra Modi appeared to be at ease. His daily routine was just like everyday, even on the morning of result announcements. He posted his first tweet at 7 in the morning —

Look forward; there is no need to look back. We need limitless courage and grit.

When two people are in the political arena then victory is destined for only one of them, both of them cannot win. He feels that his formula is very clear.

An officer related to Mr. Modi, when he was appointed as a chief minister for the first time told that he went around the state himself to understand the needs and wants of the people. On calculating and weighing everything on the basis of castes to financial needs, he figured out exactly what Gujarat’s people needed. He understood the biggest formula of development. When the people will get what the need, they wouldn’t go anywhere and start doing something for you. There was less opportunity the first time because Modi knew that he did not become the chief minister for 5 years, but he found that if he would get a second chance, there were a lot of things that he could do to improve the financial and social needs of the public in the next 5 years.

In 2002, the elections were once again announced in the state. But before that, the Godhra incident took place in February, 2002. The Godhra incident blotted Modi’s image, but he was not perturbed because of this. It was on the people to decide the real villain, because the country’s citizens cannot cry about the Godhra incident forever. There have been a thousand incidents similar to the Godhra incident in India, but the only difference was that by the time of Godhra incident, the media’s voice had become strong. The various carnages that took place in India before that are not hidden from anyone. Whether they were those of Meerut or of Bhaagalpur. If the facts are clearly analyzed then Godhra incident isn’t the only one that tarnished the honor of the country and for which just one person can be questioned.

The voice of media spread this incident to the masses, but one thing that must be noticed is that the media was against Modi. Looking at the one-sided judgment that was being broadcasted on televisions and printed in the newspapers, one can say that it was Modi’s leadership that led BJP to victory after all this. It is said about media that if it wishes, it can turn anyone into hero and even bring down anyone to a zero. Media didn’t waste any chance to portray Modi in bad light as a zero, but today, the same media doesn’t leave any chance to praise Modi and his marvelous efforts. People may or may not be differentiated with Modi and his thinking but no one can resist tipping their hats to his tremendous actions and functioning. By the mid of 2002, the leader inside Modi had completely awakened. He started the Gujarat Gaurav Yatra. He summoned the honor of Gujarat in this routine before the elections. He looked into the hearts of the Gujarat people in this crowd-magnet of a rally. He was accused of fighting on religious grounds in the parliamentary elections of December 2002, but Modi wasn’t the slightest bit disturbed with the allegations against him. He said that being a Hindu is not a crime and fighting for it cannot be called a crime either. Modi fought in the elections on his own. Modi was familiar with the art of management in elections and he brought forth his soldiers and shared with them the secret of successful management. Modi had not yet been able to go midst the people fully because he hadn’t got a proper chance. And the chance that he got had very short duration. That’s why his formula of development couldn’t be properly implemented the first time, but the plans had been made. Modi had created the formula of development in the elections of 2002 and his soldiers were out to tell the people if given the proper chance, he could give Gujarat a drastic makeover. The people of Gujarat gave him this opportunity and in December, 2002, he became the chief minister of Gujarat the second time. What was next, he used his plans and went on working for the development of Gujarat and its people.

He started executing the articles and plans that he made for development in 2003. He started a business committee named ‘Resident Gujarat’. He presented many old plans as new. He brought in ‘Man of Action’ theory for the performance of the government officials. The result of the developmental works of the past 10 years isn’t hidden from anybody, but is clearly visible in Gujarat. A wave of new change can be felt as soon as one steps on the soil of Gujarat. There are some that always stand in opposition no matter what and they can be found everywhere, even in Gujarat. About Modi, his opponents say that he hasn’t done one bit of development in Gujarat, but has spent all his time on himself, but no one tells what he did for himself. How many factories are in his name and how much property and land is he the owner of? The people of Gujarat are well aware to the answer to these questions. The voice of the opposition has started to fade. It looks like Modi truly has become a developmental icon. The people of Gujarat are now getting what they didn’t get in 40 years (before Modi became the chief minister). Why are the Gujaratis that are spread far and wide in the world, praising him? Weren’t there any Gujaratis in the world before? Why are they stepping forward to invest in Gujarat today? There are many questions that rise related to Modi. From Tata to Ambani, everyone is praising the efficient leadership skills of Modi and they will do so in the future as well. Only time can tell where Gujarat will go under Modi’s leadership, but Modi who is praised throughout Gujarat for the development that he did and other states who want to implement this model as well, one thing is sure that it is because of Modi that Gujarat has become the Gujarat it is