As Modi holds the record of becoming the third Prime Minister after Nehru, let’s take a look at his past.
Born in Gujarat, Narendra Modi has kept national politics around him for over 10 years. Let’s have a detailed look at Modi who has been sworn in as Prime Minister for the third time today.
Modi: Narendra Modi was born on September 17, 1950. Narendra Modi was born in a poor family in Vadnagar in the state of Gujarat. It is said that he worked in a tea shop in his youth. He got attracted to the principles of RSS in his youth. Subsequently, he joined the RSS in the early 1970s.
He was particularly active in the Akila Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad i.e. ABVP, the youth wing of the RSS. The Hindu political principles he learned there have been of great help to him in later years.
BJP: In 1987, he joined BJP. Modi’s hard work and his connections in the RSS earned him key positions in the Gujarat BJP in a short period of time. In 1988, the year after joining the BJP, he was appointed as the general secretary of the BJP in Gujarat.
In 1990, when the assembly elections were held in Gujarat, Narendra Modi’s role was important. Modi played an important role in shaping BJP’s campaign that time..especially his extreme campaign which won huge support among the people. BJP leaders also did not fail to notice it. If the BJP is now so strong in Gujarat, that election laid the foundation for it.
Chief Minister of Gujarat: Kesubhai Patel was appointed as the Chief Minister after the BJP won the elections in 1995. However, in 2001, Modi was appointed Chief Minister of Gujarat following the resignation of Chief Minister Kesubhai Patel. It was the first time that Modi government came in charge. Directly took charge as Chief Minister of Gujarat.
He was the Chief Minister of Gujarat for about 12 years and during his tenure Gujarat made many achievements in development. At the same time, the controversies were huge. In particular, the year after his assumption of office, there was a huge riot in Gujarat following the burning of the Godhra train. There was a lot of criticism about the way he handled this.
At the same time, the Modi-led Gujarat government left its mark on economic development and infrastructure projects. They started referring to this as the Gujarat model.
National Politics: With his unshakeable influence in Gujarat, the BJP decided to use it nationally as well. Modi increased his influence in Mellad national politics. In particular, Modi was announced as the Prime Ministerial candidate of the BJP in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. He then campaigned for economic growth and good governance.
In the last 2014 elections, with the Modi wave sweeping across the country, the BJP won 282 seats and came to power. This is the first time since 1984 that a single party has come to power with a majority.It is also the first time since independence that a party other than the Congress has come to power with a majority.
Modi as Prime Minister: During his first tenure, Modi tried several initiatives including Swachh Bharat (Clean India), Make in India and Digital India. He took demonetisation in 2016 to curb black money and corruption. It was highly criticized. Meanwhile, a few months before the Lok Sabha elections, he brought in 10% reservation for the upper caste poor.
However, this did not prevent the Majaka from winning the Lok Sabha elections in 2019 with a single majority.. The BJP won 303 seats. Actions including abrogation of Article 370 and Citizenship Amendment Act were taken in Jammu and Kashmir during this period. Especially the Ram Temple was built in Ayodhya.
It is in this context that the BJP faced the 2024 Lok Sabha elections under the leadership of Modi. Although it did not get the absolute majority as in the last two times, the BJP emerged as the single largest party by winning 240 seats. Now Modi has sworn in as the Prime Minister of our country for the third time.
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