New Delhi: Narendra Modi's success so far has been a "clever shepherding" of instilling negative images of his rivals within BJP and an "oversell" of his accomplishments besides a general poor perception of Rahul Gandhi, says a new book by a former media advisor to ex-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
"How Modi Won It: Notes From the 2014 Election" by Harish Khare is an incisive assessment of one of the most keenly- followed elections in recent history by detailing the campaigning and promises by major parties.
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"I would say that Narendra Modi's grand success so far has been a clever shepherding of various perceptions - a general poor perception of Rahul Gandhi; instilling negative images of his rivals within the BJP; and an over-sell of his own accomplishments," writes Khare, who was associated with Singh between 2009 and 2012.
He quotes a reporter who covered Modi's campaigning in Varanasi, "... Narendra Modi had run a pure Hindu-Muslim campaign... You talk to anyone and there will be all this talk of 'development', but the conversation would end with a 'wink' that suggested - 'You are a grown-up man and you have this upper-caste surname; you are not so stupid, and you can easily make out what this campaign is all about."
The journalist claimed that throughout his travels in Uttar Pradesh, he found 'the Muslims to be very angry with the Samajwadi Party as the Muzaffarnagar riots were allowed to happen'.
"My guest also summed up the simmering unhappiness with Rahul Gandhi, his team and the damage he seems to have done to the Congress's prospects: 'Rahul Gandhi has turned off all stakeholders. The AICC beat reporter is your stakeholder; but you have been pampering NGOs that have no stakes; it is only political parties and leaders who have stakes (in this election)'," the 256-page book, published by Hachette India, says.
