After Gandhi, Modi only leader with deep understanding of Indian society: Rajnath Singh

He was addressing the valedictory session of a national conference on “Delivering democracy: Reviewing two decades of Narendra Modi as head of government”, organised by Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini, a think-tank.

“Bharat ke raajnaitik itihas mein Bharat ke samajj aur iske manovigyan ki jitni samajj Modiji mein hein, woh atulaneey hain. Mahatma Gandhiji ke baad, Modiji hi ek aise neta hain jinhe Bharatiya samaaj, aur iske manovigyan par gaharee pakad hain, jo thos aur vyapak nijee anubhav par aadhaarit hain,” he said.

(“In the political history of India, Modiji’s understanding of India and its psychology is matchless. After Mahatma Gandhi, Modiji is the only leader who has a deep grasp of Indian society and its psychology, and that is based on solid and comprehensive personal experience.”)

“I believe that Modiji should be viewed more as an idea, philosophy, than as an individual. Because, in every century, certain people are born with that natural strength to transform society with their strong determination and firm ideas,” said Singh.

He said Modi’s political journey over the last two decades as head of government should be a case study in management schools on “effective leadership and efficient governance”.

“A true leader is identified by his intent and integrity, and, in both cases, Modiji is 24-carat gold. There is not a single stain of corruption on him, even after being the head of a government for 20 years,” he said.

Singh said Modi has overcome the “crisis of credibility” in Indian politics. He said the gap between the words and actions of politicians had made people lose trust in them. “ Modiji accepted this crisis of credibility as a challenge and delivered. There is not a single thing that he promised and didn’t deliver,” he said.

“A true leader is marked by his credibility and he always sets himself an example of what we have to do. He doesn’t say ‘do as I say’ but says ‘do as I do’ . Modiji has done it,” said Singh.

Singh also spoke at length about Modi’s tenure as Gujarat chief minister, saying that he took the state on the path of holistic development and worked for the progress of every section of society. “Yeh nara ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’ dete huiyae Narendra bhai ne Gujarat mein panth nirpekshta ki ek nayee ibrat likh di (By giving the slogan of ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’, Narendra bhai wrote a new lesson on secularism),” Singh said.

“It was believed that if you stand with business and industry, then your social commitment is weak. Modiji challenged this misconception. He recognised and respected (the role of) industry and entrepreneurs in nation building, and supported and promoted them,” he said.

Addressing the same conference earlier this week, Home Minister Amit Shah had said Modi was India’s “most successful administrator… since Independence”. “Even though Narendra Modi considers himself as the ‘pradhan sewak’, I can say with conviction that he is the most successful administrator the country has ever had since Independence. Because he covered all these points and took India to a different level,” Shah had said.

He had also lauded Modi for changing the “scale and size of central-run schemes and for giving GDP a human face during his seven-year tenure in power”.