Narendra Modi

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**Narendra Modi**
Image:Narendramodi.jpg
Born	September 17, 1950 Vadnagar, Mehsana district, Gujarat, India
Residence	Gandhinagar, Gujarat
Office	Chief Minister of Gujarat
Constituency	Maninagar
Successor	Incumbent
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party
As of June 18, 2006 Source: Government of Gujarat

Narendra Dāmodardās Modī (Gujarātī: નરેંદ્ર દામોદરદાસ મોદી, born September 17, 1950) has been the Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat since October 7, 2001.

He was born in Vadnagar, a town in the northern Mehsana district of Gujarat, to a middle-class Hindu family. As a young man, he joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. He became a full-time worker and organiser for it, and was later nominated by it to be a representative on the Bharatiya Janata Party.<ref>Biography - Narendra Modi. Retrieved on April 14, 2006.</ref>

He participated in the rise to political dominance of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat as its elections organiser in the early 1990s, a period which led to its election in 1995. He became Gujarat's Chief Minister in 2001, promoted to that office when his predecessor Keshubhai Patel resigned, following the defeat of the BJP in by-elections.

He won re-election in December 2002 as chief minister with 126 seats in the 182-member assembly. He enjoys a wide popularity base among the wider electorate in Gujarat<ref>Chief Minister of Gujarat. Official Portal of the Government of Gujarat (2005). Retrieved on April 14, 2006.</ref>.

1 Biography
2 Gujarat violence
3 Visa controversy
4 Aborted assassination attempt
5 Position on terrorism
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Biography

He joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in the year 1974 and was involved in the anti-corruption New Beginning Movement.<ref>Biography Narendra Modi. Retrieved on April 15, 2006.</ref> He joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in the early 1980s. He helped maintain the relations between the RSS and the BJP. In 1988 he became the General Secretary of the state BJP unit. He is believed to be a protégé of Lal Krishna Advani, who is a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party himself. Advani has praised Modi on numerous occasions, referring to him as "a leader who, after being subjected to a malicious and prolonged campaign of vilification, has been able to impress even his critics with his determination, single-minded focus, integrity and a wide array of achievements in a relatively short time"[1].

He was believed to be a back-room operator for the political party in the beginning, but during the elections he portrayed himself as a pro-Hindu leader and campaigned on a platform of Hindutva. His alleged anti-minority agenda is mired in controversy.

In 1995 he was made the National Secretary of the party, in charge of five major states in India.

In October 2001, he was asked by the party to head the government in Gujarat. In 2001, Gujarat was facing problems because of several natural calamities having struck in the preceding years, including the massive Gujarat Earthquake in January 2001. Modi re-organised the government’s administrative structure and embarked upon a massive cost-cutting exercise in order to compensate for economic losses[2]. During his administration, Gujarat registered a GDP growth rate of over 10%, the highest growth rate among all the states in India[3]. However, opposition parties, notably the Congress have accused Modi's Government of failing to ensure that the quake-affected get timely relief and rehabilitation measures[4].

The Gujarat government credits Modi with reducing the fiscal deficit of the state exchequer by fifty percent and reducing the losses of the Gujarat State Electricity Board. He has increased the availability of electricity in many parts of rural Gujarat. One of the most significant achievements of his government has been successful raising of the height of the Narmada Dam from 95 to 110.64 metres, which resulted in increased irrigation, water supplies and hydroelectric power [5].

There are reports that he married a woman working as a teacher in a poor Muslim area about 100 kilometres from Ahmedabad. This is not mentioned in his official biography. His critics say that this omission is because of the ideals of the RSS members of leading a life of celibacy — allowing in their view true dedication of work as a RSS leader.<ref>Profile: Narendra Modi. BBC News (2005). Retrieved on April 15, 2006.</ref>

[edit] Gujarat violence

Main article: 2002 Gujarat violence

In February 2002, when Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, violence broke out across the state claiming hundreds of lives. While some consider the violence to have been sporadic communal riots, others allege that the violence was directed against Muslim communities. An official estimate states that 254 Hindus and 790 Muslims were killed, with 223 more missing.<ref>Gujarat riot death toll revealed. BBC News (2005). Retrieved on April 15, 2006.</ref> The riots followed the Godhra Train Burning incident, where 58 Hindus were burnt alive on a train carriage, which was believed to have been set on fire by a Muslim mob<ref>Muslim mob burns train, Findarticles archive of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel</ref><ref>Train Carrying Hindus Set Afire by Mob in India, The Institute for Counter-terrorism</ref>. An initial panel claimed that the train burning was an accident. However, the panel was declared illegal by the Gujarat High Court<ref>Banerjee panel illegal Gujarat HC,The Indian Express</ref><ref>HC terms Sabarmati Express panel illegal,The Financial Express</ref><ref>Railway's Godhra panel illegal, says Gujarat High Court,Hindustan Times</ref>.

Subsequent reports from several human rights organisations and political opponents have claimed that Modi and his ministers instructed Gujarat's police officers not to obstruct the attacking mobs. The National Human Rights Commission criticised the government, pointing to "a comprehensive failure on the part of the State Government of Gujarat to control persistent violations of rights".<ref>We have no orders to save you. Human Rights watch (2005). Retrieved on November 2, 2006.</ref>. In turn, several of these human rights groups have been criticized for biased reporting against Hindus and overt generalizations regarding the complex situation<ref>Hours of Anti-India, Anti-Hindutva Rhetoric at “Indian” Muslim Meet, bu Yatindra Bhatnagar,International Opinion</ref><ref>Politics By Other Means: An Analysis of Human Rights Watch Reports on India,saag.org</ref>.

These claims have been rejected by Modi, and the BJP and its supporters have attacked the reports as being politically motivated, due to the fact they came out at the time of an election. A judicial commission constituted to examine allegations of Gujarat state administration's involvement in the riots of 2002 has twice so far said that there was no evidence "as yet" to implicate either Modi or his administration in the riots. However, recently the widow of ex-Congress MP Ahsan Jaafri filed a court case against Modi and his government<ref>Complaint against Modi, others. The Hindu (2006). Retrieved on July 9, 2006.</ref><ref>Taking on Modi. Frontline (2006). Retrieved on July 15-28,, 2006.</ref> As an aftermath to the riots, there were calls for Modi to resign as chief minister of Gujarat.The opposition parties stalled the national parliament over the issue. Even allies of the BJP like DMK and TDP were asking for Modi's resignation<ref>Gujarat Cabinet puts off decision on elections. The Tribune (2002). Retrieved on May 9, 2006.</ref>. Modi submitted his resignation to the Governor, Mr. Sundar Singh Bhandari, only after three months and recommended the dissolution of the 10th Gujarat Legislative Assembly<ref>Modi resigns; seeks Assembly dissolution. The Hindu (2002). Retrieved on May 9, 2006.</ref>. In the subsequent elections, the BJP, led by Modi, won the elections by a huge margin.

[edit] Visa controversy

Narendra Modi applied for a diplomatic visa to visit the United States of America, to attend meetings organised by the Asian-American Hotel Owner's Association (AAHOA) on March 20, 2005. The visit was not official, but a private one at the request of the association. The majority of the Members of AAHOA are from Modi's home state of Gujarat. Following a House resolution introduced by Congressmen John Conyers and Joe Pitts criticizing Modi's actions as Chief Minister<ref>H.RES.160. Library of Congress (THOMAS) (2005). Retrieved on October 26, 2006.</ref>, the Bush administration revoked Modi's tourist visa, citing the provisions of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act and the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 that forbid foreign government officials who are "responsible for or directly carried out, at any time, particularly severe violations of religious freedom" from being eligible for a visa. Modi was also denied a diplomatic visa, on the grounds that the purpose of his visit did not qualify for one.<ref>Issue of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's Visa Status. United States Department of State (2005). Retrieved on October 26, 2006.</ref> Modi said that the US had "insulted" India by revoking his visa, and asked the Indian government to take up the matter with the US authorities.<ref>India condemns US decision. BBC News (2005). Retrieved on April 15, 2006.</ref> The matter brought a protest to the United States from the Indian government in Delhi who condemned the decision.<ref>America denies visa to Narendra Modi. Indian Express (2006). Retrieved on April 15, 2006.</ref>

[edit] Aborted assassination attempt

On June 15,2004, Gujarat Police engaged four alleged members of the Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorist outfit in Ahmedabad in armed confrontation, shooting them down in the process. Top Gujarat officials said that the terrorists "had come to assassinate the Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi" <ref>Laskhar plot to kill Modi],rediff.com</ref>. In his confession to police, Faisal Sheikh, a suspect in the 11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings, admitted to having orchestrated the abortive assassination attempt on Modi. The confession was made on October 8, 2006 after Sheikh and his cohorts were arrested on charges of perpetrating the train blasts<ref>11/7 brain admits to plotting abortive hit on Modi,Hindustan Times</ref>.This and other such incidents have led the Gujarat government to take firm measures in order to curb the spread of terrorism in the state<ref>How Gujarat plans to counter terrorists,rediff.com</ref>.

[edit] Position on terrorism

On July 18,2006, Modi delivered a speech criticizing Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh "for his reluctance to revive anti-terror legislations" such as the Prevention of Terrorism Act. He asked the Centre to empower states to invoke tougher laws in the wake of the blasts in Mumbai<ref name="Telegraph India">Mahatma on lips, Modi fights Centre,The Telegraph</ref><ref name="Gcache-Telegraph">Mahatma on lips, Modi fights Centre,Google Cache of The Telegraph</ref>.Quoting Modi: