Unknown impact of Gujarat polls ~ NaMo leads from front

Unknown impact of Gujarat polls  !!  Nicknamed “NaMo”  - is a phenomenon. He has taken on his detractors, press, officialdom, opposition and has come out successful yet another time.  It is official, Narendra Damodardas Modi is the Chief Minister of prosperous Gujarat again. From being the 3rd of the 6 children of a small tea vendor to a highly successful CM, he has toiled a lot. 

He became the chief minister of Gujarat in October 2001, promoted to the office at a time when his predecessor Keshubhai Patel had resigned, following the defeat of BJP in the by-elections. His tenure as chief minister began on 7 October 2001. He has won the Elections in 2002; 2007 and now in 2012. Everywhere, people talk of anti-incumbency and the difficulty of holding on to public opinion when in power. He has belied all such theories.  He fought the elections on his own, projecting himself and the developmental activities in the State under his reign and the people have reassued their immense faith in his progression, which augurs well for the Nation. 

Fresh from his win in Assembly polls, which pitchforked him in the BJP’s prime ministerial candidates’ race, Chief Minister Narendra Modi said if he had committed any ‘mistake’, he sought forgiveness from the people in his victory speech rendered in Hindi.  Even as the last votes of the Gujarat Assembly elections were being counted, Narendra Modi sought to send a politically correct message. 

He made his way to the home of his one-time senior colleague turned bitter political rival Keshubhai, to call a truce and seek his blessings for the journey ahead. Around two hours later, standing on the victory podium in front of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s state headquarters in Khanpur, Modi, dressed in his trademark saffron short sleeve kurta, played victim and vengeful hero to an audience, which by all accounts, had its sights set on Delhi.

Besides his administrative skills, Modi, seemingly presents himself everywhere in the social media, electronic forum and more.  This election, he toyed with hologram and presented himself electronically at 4 different places.  He uses twitter and other social media regularly.  The Modi impact is felt elsewhere across the Nation and outside too, going by the news that the Bhutanese officials were impressed with the electoral process in the State. 

Firstpost reports that a delegation from Bhutan, which is on a visit to Gujarat to study the election process, is impressed with the peaceful conduct of Assembly polls in the state and hope to take home some electoral lessons. Bhutan deputy governor Chewang Jurmi is quoted as saying, “We have witnessed quite and peaceful elections here. The entire process is very well coordinated and is going on smoothly.” Wishing to replicate the good electoral practices during polls in the Himalayan Kingdom, Jurmi said priority given to senior citizens and women for voting is a good move which can result in voter turnout increase.

He further stated that “Priority to senior citizens and women to exercise their franchise is a step in the right direction.” The door-to-door distribution of voter slips to electors is another electoral practice that has caught the attention of the 10-member delegation.  While, in Bhutan, voters are frisked before they enter the polling station, there is no-frisking of electors in India. It is another voter-friendly process that the delegation from Himalayan Kingdom is interested in implementing in their country. Jurmi said that voters here have the option to exercise their franchise even without Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) by showing any of the mandatory 15 documents, which is not the case in Bhutan, where one cannot vote if one does not possess the Voter Photo Identity Card. The delegation also expressed their satisfaction over the dry day (no alcohol) rule during (Dec 13-17) polling periods.

The delegation from Bhutan comprised four deputy governors, Brigadier Singye Dorji of the Royal Bhutan Army, two Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), a police official, two Majors (one each from Army and Police).  Another members expressed surprise over the fact that electors in India dress as they wish on the voting day while in Bhutan it is mandatory to dress up in National Dress on the polling day. The national dress for Bhutanese men is the gho, a knee-length robe tied at the waist by a cloth belt known as the kera. Women wear an ankle-length dress, the kira, which is clipped at one shoulder and tied at the waist.

So, Bhutan is too impressed with Na Mo and the State of Gujarat and the Indian way of conduct of elections..

With regards – S. Sampathkumar.

22nd Dec 2012.

With inputs from www.firstpost.com