New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi completed 6 months of his tenure in South Block on November 26, 2014. In order to analyze how he has evolved as Prime Minister in the first six months of his rule, one can follow two distinct paths.
Those who look at political developments through a particular shade of glass may have their own assessments consisting of separate lists of achievements and failures. But how would Modi come across as the Prime Minister for a person who wants to evaluate him purely on the basis of his actions and public perceptions rather than his ideological proclivities?
There is one section that believes that Modi is perhaps the most charismatic political leader to have appeared on the political horizon in recent times. The 'Modi' chants noticed at his election rallies and his public speeches are baffling as well as amazing. When did you see the audience shouting the name of a political leader with such a religious zeal last time? No wonder, Modi is being described as the rockstar politician not only inside India, but most importantly, outside India, among the Indian diaspora.
Even Barack Obama, the US president, whose government had denied Modi a visa for nine long years seems to have a liking for Modi. Obama has been publicly praising the Indian prime minister. As veteran diplomats put it, you have won half the battle if US president is seen on your side. After winning Obama's praise, Modi's charisma and appeal appear to have stretched well beyond Indian shores.
The most convincing indication of Modi catching the fancy of overseas Indians came from New York's Madison Square Garden, where Modi was at his oratorical best, where he mesmerized the audience, largely consisting of the Indian diaspora. Modi repeated the feat in Sydney where the public response to his public speech was equally euphoric and tantalizing.
One thing that goes in Modi's favour is the fact that he has taken over as the Prime Minister of India after Manmohan Singh, who was not a top-of-the-line orator. To be fair to him, the economist Manmohan Singh was not a political leader in the true sense, despite the fact that today he is one of the seniormost leaders of Congress party. For the last 10 years, we had a prime Minister who lacked charisma to connect with the audience. People of India, both residents and non-residents, were yearning for a leader who could not only lead them through actions, but words as well. And Modi has proved that he is a wordsmith par excellence.
So what is it that differentiates Narendra Modi from Manmohan Singh? The biggest difference is that Modi comes across as a leader who has got ideas and has the will to take the country out of the morass of poverty, illiteracy and poor civic amenities.
Now the question is – can a good speech compensate for the actual development on the ground? How can anybody say that Modi will bring necessary changes just by using his powerful oratorical skills? Nothing much can be achieved by merely making passionate speeches, but the utterances definitely give an idea of whether the person has the basic understanding of the problems that the nation is facing.
Modi's humble upbringing separates him from politicians like Rahul Gandhi or even Dr. Manmohan Singh. Modi has lived the life of a common man and that's why he is mostly at ease while connecting with the hoi polloi. His ‘Jan-dhan yojana' somewhere points to his understanding of the problems that a common man faces.
Critics may point out that 74 percent of bank accounts opened under ‘Jan-dhan yojana' have zero balance but one can't forget that all the account holders have got an insurance cover of Rs. 1 lakh. This will prove nothing short of a blessing in disguise for those hapless people who can't afford to deposit a single penny in their respective bank accounts. This is not to overlook the fact that reports of irregularities have surfaced from a few states but that can be attributed to the systemic rust and a more loyal-than-the king attitude of certain bureaucrats and some BJP leaders. Modi definitely needs to put enough checks and balances in the system to ensure that such elements are effectively taken care of.
Similarly, the idea to ask every legislator to adopt a village is again very innovative. Initially, it may sound far-fetched and unrealistic, but after five years, if implemented in letter and spirit, it has the potential to become the harbinger of a change that can sweep India. As Modi had pointed out, parliament alone has almost 800 members. If you add the number of MLAs of every state to that list, then the number becomes very impressive. If they adopt one village each then a good number of Indian villages can witness significant improvement in the basic amenities. And the change can be tangible in a span of five years.
One argument that is always given against Modi's style of functioning is that he is autocratic and does not take his ministerial colleagues into confidence before taking crucial policy decisions.
Now this is one argument that can't be termed as totally untrue, if Modi's past record is any indication. One should not forget how Modi ruled Gujarat when he was the Chief Minister of that state. Once convinced about a particular policy or stand, he did not listen to anybody, not even to RSS leaders and the other constituents of what has come to be known as the larger “Sangh Parivar'. Many of his economic policies were in stark contrast to the stated position of the Sangh parivar, but Modi managed to have his way. People of Gujarat know how he sent the fiery VHP leader Pravin Togadia into near oblivion. Modi dared to challenge even RSS on key economic issues in Gujarat because he was confident of his direct connect with the people of the state. And consecutive electoral victories in the state vindicated his stand.
The same appears to be the case in Delhi for the Prime Minister. Modi has got this feeling that the 282 seats that his party got in 2014 Lok Sabha elections was a vote of confidence that the people of India reposed in him. And he is not very far off from reality. The mandate that the BJP received largely belongs to Modi, the prime ministerial candidate and not to the BJP as such. Undoubtedly, in the Westminster model that we have adopted, it's the cabinet that takes all important decisions and if a Prime Minister starts taking all decisions on his own, then it defies set norms of a cabinet system of governance.
But the 2014 election was no less than a presidential election. People voted for a person and not for policies. The people trusted Modi's credentials as a good administrator despite many being skeptical of his claims that he had no role in the Gujarat riots of 2002. This is despite the fact that SIT appointed by the Supreme Court has given him a clean chit in this matter.
Six months is too short a time to judge the performance of a Prime Minister but it definitely gives an indication of whether the person is still enjoying the support of the common man. And it's not an easy task in a pluralist and multi-religious country like India, where tired and helpless people expect overnight results.
Even Modi's opponents agree that Modi played perhaps the most important role in BJP's spectacular victories in Haryana and Maharashtra.
This is not to say that there are no concern areas. Of course, there are a number of issues that need to be resolved by the Prime Minister himself.
One such issue is the continuing distrust and fear among the Muslims over Modi's real intentions. The Supreme Court might have given him a clean chit in the 2002 Gujarat riots, but politics, as we all know, is a game of perceptions. And the reality is that a huge majority of Muslim community is still not comfortable with the perceived image of Modi. Modi needs to communicate directly with the Muslims, the way he did with his electorate in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
The other challenge for Modi is to fulfil the expectations that he has generated among his electorate. He had promised to voters that he will bring good roads, better water supply and round-the-clock electricity after taking over the reins of power in Delhi. But the problem is that these crucial sectors fall under the purview of state governments in our federal structure. How would Modi be able to deliver on these promises? The Centre can at best formulate schemes and release more funds, but the implementation lies in the hands of state bureaucracy, that is controlled by state governments and some of them are politically hostile to Modi.
A case in example is Uttar Pradesh, where BJP in alliance with small parties, won 73 out of 80 Lok Sabha seats. Now the state government is being led by Samajwadi Party which will never like to see the BJP taking away all the credit for development and it means that Modi should be ready for roadblocks from SP. The wining spree in UP has already come to a halt with reverses in assembly by-polls.
Modi will have to find a way of winning over his political opponents for joining hands wherever issues of development are concerned. The question is - will he succeed in achieving that feat?
