The present Prime Minister of India is one of the most influential leaders in the democratic history of the country. His story is often regarded as one from rags-to-riches. However, it is more a story of determination and dedication.
1. Signature: The present Prime Minister of India is well connected to his roots even after reaching the zenith of his political career. He is grounded and is one of the patrons of the widely spoken and read language and avidly uses Hindi while addressing the public or the press. What marks his uniqueness is that Modi always puts his signature in Gujarati, whether it be an official document or in any casual occasion.
2. He is a Post Graduate: After completing his higher secondary education from his hometown Vadnagar-Gujarat, there was a hiatus in his educational career. However, he resumed his studies by enrolling in a bachelor’s degree in a correspondence course under Delhi University. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science in 1978. He then pursued an M.A. in Political Science from Gujarat University and a few years later became a postgraduate.
3. Course From US: Yes, one among the numerous interesting facts about Modi is that he had undertaken a three months course in the United States where he was given lessons on image management and public relations.
4. A Follower: This eminent leader is follower of the ideologies of great saint Swami Vivekananda, and Modi even penned pieces revolving around Swamiji and his ideologies. Swami Vivekananda himself was a great orator and is known by many for his speech at the Parliament of the World’s Religion. Co-incidentally, Swamiji was also named Narendra by his parents.
5. A Poet Within: He engages in literary pursuits and has penned a number of poetic pieces in his mother tongue, Gujarati. He has also published some of his literary works. Apart from being a poet, this superlative leader also takes delight in photography and even held an exhibition in which his talent as a photographer was manifested.
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6. Followed By: He was one among the FOUR people whom Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe follows on the social networking site Twitter. Fifth person whom Prime Minister Shinzo Abe followed is Indian Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
7. Crease-Less: The Prime Minister of India is always well dressed and his clothes do not have any crease. This is a habit he has inculcated from his younger days. He used a self-devised iron wherein he filled a brass container with hot water to press his clothes.
8. Tech Savvy: As is evident from his social networking accounts, this leader has an inclination for technology and he is in constant touch with the people through his social media accounts. Whether it is Twitter or Facebook, he is a regular user and keeps a note of the praises and especially the criticism he is met with. To add to it, he was the first to propagate his election campaign on Social media platforms.
9. Holiday: This is a word this illustrious leader does not relate to. He has been the Chief Minister of Gujarat for a span of thirteen years and during his term in office he did not take any leave. He is a workaholic and work tops the priority list of Modi.
10. Style Icon: He is well-dressed and carries himself quite well in all outfits, be it Indian or Western. Modi has his own style statement and teamed up with several brands that custom make his daily attire. Like most regular blokes, he too has a liking for wrist watches, sandals and hats.
11. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel: One of the eminent leaders of Indian Freedom movement, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, is one of Modi’s idols and motivates him in his journey as a leader. Sardar, as he is well-known as, was the first Deputy Prime Minister of Independent India and he too was also born in Gujarat.
12. His Communication Skill: Modi has communication skills which is rare to find. Known to be one of the best orators in the country, his command over language was the prime reason which lured the nation by his side. Modi has a vast knowledge in various fields and that is only because he does his homework well before getting into any issue.
13. Not An Elite But A Common Man: In a speech delivered on 7th October 2001, after he was chosen as the new Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi was quoted saying “I did not become the Chief Minister of Gujarat on 7th October 2001. I have always been the CM (Chief Minister); I am a CM today and will remain a CM tomorrow because by CM I mean ‘common man’ or Aam Aadmi.” After being elected as the Prime Minister of India, he said that he is the Number 1 mazdoor (worker). In the 68th Indian Independence Day, he gave a speech at the Red Fort where he mentioned that he is the Pradhan Sevak (Prime Servant) of the nation.
14. Narendra Modi is India’s 15th prime minister. He secured the largest mandate any Indian prime minister has won since 1984 in the country’s mammoth general election in April.
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15. Modi was born on 17 September 1950 in Vadnagar, Gujarat, making him the country’s first prime minister born in independent India.
16. He is the most-followed Asian leader on Twitter and is constantly tweeting and checking his Facebook account.
17. Modi was only granted a visa to visit the United States when he was elected leader, as the US government denied one for nine years for his failure to stop communal riots that killed more than 1,000 people – the majority of them were Muslims – when he was chief leader of the state of Gujarat.
18. Modi has a thrilling backstory: from tea seller to prime minister.
19. Modi has become a cult-like figure, revered and reviled in equal measure.
20. Secular: He has ordered to demolish many Hindu temples which don’t have proper government sanction and he is also admired by many Muslims of his state. But he is not much loved by the Muslim communities as it is said that he did not do anything to control 2002 Gujarat riot in which many innocent Muslims were killed, the riot took place under his ministry but he never apologized for it.
21. During his Japan visit in the capacity of Chief Minister of Gujarat (to talk about infrastructure projects and investments for Gujarat), Modi decided to travel via bullet train. A little Japanese girl who was sitting alone in the train came up to him and greeted him. What happened next is super awesome! Mr. Modi and the girl both played video games for the next 15-20 minutes.
22. Modi has undertaken the largest mass outreach during his election campaign by travelling 3 lakh km addressing 25 states. Besides 1350 innovative 3D rallies and 437 public rallies has been addressed by him. It was covered in 8 months of the election campaign.