Narendra Modi

Date of Birth: 17.09.1950

Narendra Damodardas Modi - Indian politician, Prime Minister of India since May 26, 2014. From 2001 to 2014 he was the Chief Minister of the state of Gujarat and served as a Member of Parliament from Varanasi. Modi, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party - BJP (Indian People's Party), is an Indian nationalist and a member of the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

Place of Birth. Education. Narendra Damodardas Modi was born on September 17, 1950, into a family of grocers in Vadnagar, Mehsana district, in the state of Bombay (now Gujarat). He was the third of six children of Damodardas Mulchand Modi and his wife Hiraben. As a child, Modi helped his father sell tea and then ran his own tea stall. In his early teens, he became interested in politics and joined the RSS at the age of eight. He left home after finishing school, partly due to an arranged marriage he refused. Modi traveled across India for two years, visiting various religious centers.

In 1978, Modi graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the School of Open Learning at the University of Delhi. Five years later, in 1982, he earned a Master's degree in Political Science from Gujarat University.

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Political Career. In 1971, he joined the RSS on a full-time basis. He held several positions in the party hierarchy until 2001 and rose to the post of General Secretary.

In June 1975, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed a state of emergency in India that lasted until 1977. During this period, known as the emergency period, many political opponents were imprisoned, and opposition groups were banned. Modi was appointed General Secretary of the Gujarat Lok Sangharsh Samiti, the RSS committee that coordinated the resistance against the emergency in Gujarat. Soon after, the RSS was banned. Modi had to go underground and often hide to avoid arrest. He was involved in producing leaflets against the government, sent them to Delhi, and organized demonstrations. During this time, Modi wrote a book in Gujarati, Sangharsh Ma Gujarat (In the Struggle Against Gujarat), in which he described the events during the emergency period.

In 1998, at the request of then-Bharatiya Janata Party leader Lala Krishn Advani, he led the party's campaign in the states of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. In October 2001, he became the Chief Minister of Gujarat, replacing the resigned Keshubhai Patel. In 2007, he was re-elected for a third term, and in 2012 for a fourth.

On September 13, 2013, Narendra Modi was nominated as the candidate for Prime Minister by the Bharatiya Janata Party and led the campaign in the 2014 parliamentary elections. Modi successfully utilized social media, even using holograms, to communicate directly with voters, with the BJP's programmatic slogan being: 'Nationalism is our inspiration. Development and good management are our goal'. The voting in the elections was held in nine phases from April 7 to May 12, with a turnout of 66.38%.

After the final election results, the United Progressive Alliance led by the Indian National Congress party won only 59 out of 543 constituencies, while the BJP won in 283 constituencies, thereby obtaining an absolute majority and becoming the first party in 30 years to be able to form a government independently. The BJP gained control of the lower house of Parliament, Lok Sabha, but retained only 46 seats in the Rajya Sabha, while the INC holds 68 seats, allowing for veto power.

On May 20, Narendra Modi was appointed Prime Minister of India by the Bharatiya Janata Party. On May 26, Narendra Modi took the oath of office as Prime Minister of India.

In India and abroad, Modi is regarded as an extremely controversial figure. His actions during the riots in Gujarat in 2002 drew sharp criticism. In particular, he was accused of not providing protection to Indian Muslims. Nevertheless, Modi enjoys broad support among the population of Gujarat. He is credited with the strong economic growth of the state in the 2000s. According to the popular magazine India Today, Modi was named the best Chief Minister of India in 2006 and 2011.

Interesting Facts. Narendra Modi actively communicates with his followers on social media. The number of followers on his Twitter account is over 30.3 million. Notably, among politicians, only Barack Obama (89.5 million) and Donald Trump (31.2 million) have more followers. Modi often tweets in the language of the country he is officially visiting.

In 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2018, he was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine.

He was voted Time Magazine's Person of the Year by readers in 2014 and 2016.

In 2016, a wax figure of Narendra Modi was unveiled at the Madame Tussauds museum.

Modi leads a modest life. From a young age, he has restricted himself in many ways and has tried to avoid excesses throughout his life. As a vegetarian since childhood, he has also abstained from alcoholic beverages.

He writes poetry in Gujarati (one of the 23 official languages of India). He published a poetic book 'Blessed Are Our Eyes'.

Family. According to tradition, Modi's marriage was arranged by his parents when he was still a child. He was engaged to a girl named Jashodaben at the age of 13, whom he never really saw. Their marriage was never consummated, and Modi kept it secret, as he could not otherwise be a 'Parcharak' (regional missionary) in the puritanical Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Although Modi kept his marriage secret for most of his career, he acknowledged his wife when he ran for parliamentary elections in 2014.

Modi maintains close relations with his mother Hiraben and often visits her on his birthday to receive her blessings.

09.18.2023