1 2 3 4 10 34 36 50 67 89 97 153 163 178 181 187 190 193 197 201 205 208 215 5 218 222 227 247 254 259 270 6 7 8 9 Chapter 1 WHO IS NARENDRA MODI ? New Delhi, May 26, 2014 Shri Narendra Damodardas Modi is the Prime Minister of India and he took oath as India’s Prime Minister on 26 th May 2014 after leading the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to a decisive victory in the 2014 Parliamentary Elections. He was the 14 th and current Chief Minister of Gujarat. He resigned to take up the office of the Prime Minister of India. Shri Narendra Modi showing the victory sign after the results of the 2014 Parliamentary Elections. Shri Narendra Modi was a key strategist for the BJP in the successful 1995 and 1998 Gujarat State Election Campaigns, and was a major campaign figure in the 2009 Parliamentary Elections. He first became the Chief Minister of Gujarat in October 2001 after the resignation of his predecessor, Shri Keshubhai Patel, and following the defeat of BJP in the by-elections. In July 2007, he became the longest-serving Chief Minister in Gujarat's history, at 10 which point he had been in power for 2,063 days continuously. He is currently serving his fourth consecutive term as the Chief Minister. Shri Narendra Modi being sworn in as the 15 th Prime Minister of India by the President Shri Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan. Shri Narendra Modi is a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and is described as a Hindu nationalist by media, scholars and himself. He is an important figure both within India and outside the country as his administration has been the point at issue for the incidents surrounding the 2002 Gujarat riots. He has been praised for his economic policies, which are credited with creating an environment for a high rate of economic growth in Gujarat. However, his administration has also been a subject matter of discussion to make a significant positive impact upon the human development of the State. 11 EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION Shri Narendra Modi with his mother on his 63 rd birthday on 17 September 2013. Shri Narendra Modi was born on 17 September 1950 to a family of Grocers belonging to the backward Ghanchi community, in Vadnagar in Mehsana district of what was then Bombay Presidency (present-day Gujarat), India. He was the third of six children born to Shri Damodardas Mulchand Modi and his wife, Heeraben. He helped his father sell tea at Vadnagar Railway Station. As a child and 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. 12 Shri Narendra Modi in his Early Childhood Little is known of the two years that Shri Narendra Modi spent travelling, probably in the Himalayas, and he resumed selling tea upon his return. He then worked in the Staff Canteen of Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation until he became a full –time pracharak of the RSS in 1970. He had been involved with the RSS as a volunteer from the age of eight and had come into contact with Shri Vasant Gajendragadkar and Shri Nathalal Jaghda, leaders of the Jan Sangh who later founded the BJP's Gujarat State Unit. After Shri Narendra Modi had received some RSS training in Nagpur, which was a prerequisite for taking up an official position in the Sangh Parivar, he was given charge of Sangh's student wing, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, in Gujarat. 13 Shri Narendra Modi in his Early Childhood Shri Narendra Modi organised agitations and covert distribution of Sangh's pamphlets during the Emergency. Shri Narendra Modi graduated with an Extramural Degree through Distance Education in Political Science from Delhi University. Shri Narendra Modi remained a pracharak in 14 the RSS while he completed his Master's Degree in Political Science from Gujarat University. Shri Narendra Modi in the guise of a Sikh during Emergency EARLY POLITICAL CAREER Shri Narendra Modi formally joined the RSS after the Indo- Pakistani War of 1971. In 1975, the then Prime Minister of India, Smt. Indira Gandhi declared a State of Emergency and jailed political opponents. Shri Narendra Modi went underground in Gujarat, occasionally disguised, and printed and sent booklets against the Central Government to Delhi. He also participated in the movement against the Emergency under Shri Jayaprakash Narayan. 15 Shri Narendra Modi as a Sangh Pracharak The RSS assigned Shri Narendra Modi to the BJP in 1985. While Shri Shankarsingh Vaghela and Shri Keshubhai Patel were the established names in the Gujarat BJP at that time, Shri Narendra Modi rose to prominence after organising Shri Murli Manohar Joshi's Kanyakumari- Srinagar Ekta yatra in 1991. In 1988, Shri Narendra Modi was elected as the 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. 16 Shri Narendra Modi as a Political Strategist In November 1995, Shri Narendra Modi was elected National Secretary of BJP and was transferred to New Delhi where he was assigned responsibility for the Party's activities in Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Shri Vaghela defected from the BJP after he lost the 1996 Lok Sabha elections, having previously threatened to do so in 1995. Shri Narendra Modi was promoted to the post of General Secretary (Organisation) of the BJP in May 1998. While on the Selection Committee for the 1998 Assembly Elections in Gujarat, Shri Narendra Modi favoured supporters of Shri Keshubhai Patel over those loyal to Shri Vaghela, in an attempt to put an end to the factional divisions within the 17 Party. His strategies were credited as being key to winning the 1998 elections. CHIEF MINISTER OF GUJARAT Members of Shri Narendra Modi's former Council of Ministers with him at a Planning Commission meet in New Delhi In 2001, Shri Keshubhai Patel's health was failing, and the BJP had lost seats in the by-elections. Allegations of abuse of power, corruption and poor administration were being made, and Shri Patel's standing had been damaged by his administration's handling of the Bhuj Earthquake of 2001. As a result, the BJP's national leadership sought a new candidate for the office of the Chief Minister, and Shri Narendra Modi, who had aired his misgivings about Shri Keshubhai Patel's administration, was chosen as a replacement. Shri L. K. Advani, a Senior Leader of the BJP, did not want to ostracise Shri Patel and was worried about Shri Narendra Modi's lack of experience in governance. Shri Narendra Modi declined an offer to be Patel's Deputy Chief Minister, informing Shri Advani and Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee that he was "going to be fully responsible for Gujarat or not at all", and on 7 October 2001, Shri Narendra Modi was appointed the Chief Minister of Gujarat, with the responsibility of preparing the BJP for elections in December 2002. As the Chief 18 Minister, Shri Narendra Modi's ideas of governance revolved around privatisation and small Government, which stood at odds with what political commentator Aditi Phadnis has described as the "anti-privatisation, anti- globalisation position" of the RSS. FIRST TERM (2001-2002) 2002 GUJARAT RIOTS On 27 February 2002, a train with several hundred passengers including large numbers of Hindu pilgrims was burnt near Godhra, killing around 60 people. Following rumors that the fire was carried out by Muslim arsonists, anti-Muslim violence spread throughout Gujarat. Estimates of the death toll ranged from 900 to over 2,000, while several thousand more people were injured. The Narendra Modi Government imposed a curfew in major cities, issued shoot-at-sight orders, and called for the army to prevent the violence from escalating. However, human rights organizations, opposition parties, and sections of the media all accused Gujarat's Government of taking insufficient action against the riots, and even condoning it in some cases. In April 2009, the Supreme Court appointed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to inquire into the Gujarat Government and Shri Narendra Modi's role in the incidents of communal violence. The SIT reported to the Court in December 2010 submitting that they did not find any substantial incriminating evidence against Shri Narendra Modi of willfully allowing communal violence in the State. 2002 ELECTION In the aftermath of the violence, there were widespread calls for Shri Narendra Modi to resign from his position as the Chief Minister of Gujarat. These came from both within 19 and outside the State, including from the leaders of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Telugu Desam Party, which were allies in then BJP-led NDA Government at the Centre. The opposition Parties stalled the National Parliament over the issue. In April 2002, at the Executive meeting of BJP at Goa, Shri Narendra Modi submitted his resignation; however, it was rejected by the Party. On 19 July 2002, Shri Narendra Modi's Cabinet had an emergency meeting and offered its resignation to the Governor of Gujarat, Shri S. S. Bhandari, and the Assembly was dissolved. In the subsequent elections, the BJP, led by Shri Narendra Modi, won 127 seats in the 182- member assembly. SECOND TERM (2002-2007) Shri Narendra Modi's emphasis shifted during his second term from Hindutva to the economic development of Gujarat.