Narendra Modi: The Creative Disruptor
Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned 72 today. An astute politician and visionary, Prime Minister Modi has, time and again, proved naysayers wrong. Those who have known Prime Minister from close quarters know that he works like a karmayogi without bothering about the outcome. One such person is former Editor of the Organiser, Dr R Balashankar.
FollowI do not see into the future; nor do I care to see. But one vision I see as clear as life before me is that the ancient mother has awakened once more, sitting on her throne more glorious than ever; Proclaim her to the entire world with the voice of peace and benediction.
Swami Vivekananda
Politics is like theoretical physics and as gripping as Mario Puzo novel. A fascinating book Beautiful Invisible by Glovanni Vignale published by Oxford University Press, compared physics with fiction. “A good scientific theory is like a symbolic tale, an allegory of reality. Its characters are abstractions that may not exist in reality, yet they give us a way of thinking more deeply about reality. Like a fine work of art, the theory creates its own world: transforms reality into something else- an illusion perhaps, but an illusion that has more value than the literal fact” wrote Vignale in his book on creativity, imagination and theoretical physics.
The saga of Narendra Modi’s 2014 election victory has not yet been fully analyzed. One is yet to come across a sympathetic, academic validation of the event, as most contemporary historians dismissed it as fluke. Nobody tried to understand the man behind the phenomena.
It needed a divine extravaganza for an ordinary man from a remote Gujarat village to achieve what he did. Like the theoretical physics, that most abstract of sciences are akin to the works of great writers, as Vignale declared, the imagination and passion created the scientific journey from pendulum to relativity and quantum mechanics, anextraordinary, unorthodox gravity of emotions, a pressing need for self-assertion, pace and potency resonated across the country with the arrival of Modi on the geographical spread of India. Only Modi visualized that the BJP can win a majority on its own and it happened.
It is the achievements of the Narendra Modi government that inspired me. After 2014 election, the government that was formed under Modi has shown what an ideogically committed, intensily nationalist leadership can do five year.
We saw India transforming in many spheres as never before. Happiness quotient has now become a winning political strategy in the West and many governments are experimenting with providing maximum happiness to the highest number of people.
Vajpayee laid the foundation, Narendra Modi is building on it a wonderful edifice, marvelling the world at large. During this period Modi has moved a half of India, a population almost double the number of the entire Europe, to a better life than they lived before. With electrification, free gas connection, health insurance, loan schemes, free housing, clean toilets, better roads, and digitial India, he transformed lives as never before, reached governance to the doorsteps of every needy Indian. Never before so large a population have been nurtured out of poverty, despair and destitution.
“India will drive world growth for the next 30 years,” declares the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Swami Vivekananda in the early dawn of last century had predicted India -- Bharat Mata -- to rise again from her long slumber. Narendra Modi seems to have become the man to realize this prophecy for the 1.25 billion Indians.
Modi became the man India was waiting. The man of destiny. That is the story we have to catch. How he turned the tides, how the mountains of pessimism, negation and cynism tried to resist and stop the big change, how they still try and scheme to maintain status quo and how in the midst of brazen obstinacy his audaucity lit the torch of hope and marched ahead, carrying all generations of the population along the plank of 'Sab ke Saath, Sab ka Vikas'.
Modi moved to empower the poor. He made them realize their share and fight for it. The ones who were the underdog of Indian society are now getting their voice echoed, and shatter the establishment of vested interest. Modi is ushering in a new political possibility.
And as former President A.P.J.Abdul Kalam said, “Give the nation a vision, a nation without a vision will die”. That is a gripping, thrilling, inspiring narrative.
Modi is no accidental Prime Minister. He had to fight hard at every inch so that he could survive the test. He had no pedigree.
In April 1, 2012,when I met him,as the Editor of Organiser,at his official residence as Chief Minister of Gujarat he shared his thoughts and he was convinced that he only can bring about the tectonic shift. He was fully aware of his immense popularity and he knew India was waiting for him.
Manyleaders in public life overcome the tryst with destiny, but few make history.Abraham Lincoln reinvented US Presidency and reestablished the Union. Franklin Roosevelt fought recession and restored America’s position as economic superpower. Deng Xiaoping redefined Chinese Communism and ushered the era of modern neo-capitalist economic boom in China.Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not yet attained such heights but he has all chances of creating history, establishing India as the economic superpower.
After taking two adventurous economic reforms, with great political risk, demonetization and GST, Modi proved naysayers wrong. By introducing the Mudra Scheme with Startup and Standup incentives Modi has redefined the job market making self-employment the first career option of every proud aspirational Indian. It is rarely that history provides such combination of factors to make a leader and project him as the sentinel of hope.Modi was blessed with conspicuous complexity of circumstances that he had no escape but win.
I once asked him as to what is the secret of his success. His reply was eloquent: “Swayam ko mitane ki kshamta rakhta hu” (I burn myself up when I decide to do something).What he meant was that he works like a karmayogi without bothering about the outcome, giving his entire energy to make a success of whatever he attempts. This perhaps defines the man.
The views expressed here are of the author's.
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