Addressing thousands of BJP supporters, the chief minister repeatedly appealed to the Gujarati pride of voters but curiously chose to speak in Hindi; pretended not to hear the chorus of 'PM, PM' from the crowd
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi declared yesterday that his hat-trick of an election win held a national message and that he was serving “Mother India” besides his own state.u00a0Addressing thousands of BJP supporters in his Maninagar constituency, the 62-year-old politician repeatedly appealed to the Gujarati pride of the voters but curiously chose to speak in Hindi.
Mama’s boy: After leading the BJP to a third-time win in assembly elections, Narendra Modi drove tou00a0meet his aged mother Hiraba yesterday. Pic/AFP
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The BJP’s victory, he said, was “a victory for every Indian, whether they are in Assam or Kerala or Jammu and Kashmir”.u00a0Modi pointedly pretended not to hear the chorus in the gathering for his elevation as India’s prime minister as the crowds chanted “PM, PM, PM, PM, PM...” towards the end of his speech.
Modi ridiculed political pundits who he said had failed to understand the pulse of the Gujarat electorate. “Development won today,” he thundered, repeatedly drawing cheers and wild clapping. “There was a thinking in our politics that good economics is bad politics. It was as if good governance did not suit our politics.”
He quickly added that the people of the country too needed good governance and economic development of the kind seen in Gujarat.
“I seek your forgiveness if there have been drawbacks, mistakes (in my administration),” said Modi, who came to power in Gujarat in late 2001 and whose early reign was marked by the 2002 communal riots.
“Give me your blessings so that we don’t make any mistake (again),” he said adding, “Even by mistake, we should not do any wrong to anyone.”
Keshubhai’s, no enemy
After leading the BJP to a third-time win in the assembly elections, Modi drove to his meet his aged mother and, surprisingly, his predecessor and political foe Keshubhai Patel — whose feet he touched in reverence. “I don’t consider anyone my enemy in democracy,” he said.
Besides defeating the Congress, Modi’s sweeping win also punctured former BJP Chief Minister Patel’s Gujarat Parivartan Party which was left gasping with just two seats.
Party comes first
“Victory is victory... Even if we had won 93 seats, we would have taken our oath (of office)... But they are not interested in this simple arithmetic,” he said.
In an apparent response to media projections that Modi had grown taller than the BJP, he said, “The party is our mother. It is under her guidance that we grow. Whatever we are, it is because of the party. If there is no party, we are nowhere.”
Modi said even as he was awaited final election results. “I was stunned. They are not able to digest the Gujarat victory even now. I wonder if they will be able to sleep tonight!” he said about senior political pundits.
The BJP veteran said the people of Gujarat had risen above caste and other divides to give him another five-year mandate. “I salute the voters of Gujarat for rejecting all greed and lies.”u00a0
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