Is Modi a modern Avatar of Gandhi?

By Shashi Narasimhiah

(Author is indebted to is friend Akshaya Malaviya for his valuable input into this article)

Can anyone be compared to the greatest Mahatma the word has seen? And, can we be so adventurous as to even hazard a comparison between the immortal Mahatma and the charismatic Modi? I am sure there would be many who would raise their eyebrow for even bringing up the idea of this comparison however notional or farfetched it may be. Many like Gandhi and dislike Modi.Many like Modi and dislike Gandhi, many dislike both and many like both. But for the first time since the Gandhi storm which swept away the British like flies in a breeze, India is experiencing a Modi storm of comparable force which is at least perceived to be sweeping away a lot of current day issues which face a very different and a very complex India.

One undisputed reality is – both Gandhi and Modi are the kind of leaders India has not seen in its entire history – at least modern history (probably Lord Rama could challenge these two). There are other kings and queens who during the course of Indian history have exhibited sparks of great leadership, but their sphere of influence was much smaller. Therefore none polarised India like these two, none was faced with the kind of complex issues that these two faced and none was able to achieve the kind of outcome Gandhi achieved and Modi is endeavouring to achieve – at least one can’t blame him for not trying.

I have attempted to piece together some comparison between the two very different Gujarati personalities who have lived at very different times and encountered a very different set of challenges of a very different society called India:

1. Perception of no personal interest:

The most visible common factor between the two would be – the perception, repeat, perception of both men having absolutely no personal interest and the well-being, progress and prosperity of India being the one and only goal they have set for themselves. They both could convince the masses that nothing else including their personal lives, comfort and well-being has mattered to them. This attribute in both has resulted in a huge impact on the masses – especially in a society like India where time and again we have seen self-serving and corrupt political leaders. They both managed to play this card brilliantly to garner unprecedented support to their cause.

2. Perception of simple living and being totally clean

This flows on from the above point. Their personal needs are perceived to be bare minimum. They are an open book and have absolutely nothing to hide. They both come across as very clean and very transparent – a rarity in Indian politics – actually a rarity in India. Instead of being a King or a ruler (as many were), both exude the attribute of a fatherly figure and are regarded as role models in clean and simple living by the billions – not millions, not just in India and not just by the Indians.

3. Hindus by heart, thought, deed and life

This too flows on from the previous point. We Hindus see both Gandhi and Modi as someone we are proud of, someone who represent us with a rare combination of dignity, confidence and power and who can make us feel proud of who we are on the world stage. The only difference is – Gandhi did not identify himself with any particular Hindu organisation such as RSS, Jansangh or VHP and his Hindu appeal was more subtle than Modi’s. No wonder Gandhi’s words of Ram Rajya and Ram Dhun ring in our ears to this day and the bhajan“Raghupati Raghav Raja ram” and “Vaishnava Jana To, Tene Kahiye Je” became immortal and no wonder – to commemorate Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary artists from 124 countries recreated this song! And on Modi – even some of what Modi is “accused” of – such as his role or lack of it in the riot against Muslims in Gujarat actually work in his favour – not just among Hindus! No wonder President Trump calls him his great friend, a good man, and wait – The Father of India – ironically the very same terminology used to address Gandhi!

4. Speaking what people want to hear/see

They lived in very different times, but the similarities in their actions and words cannot be missed. Both knew/know precisely what their audience want to hear/see. While Gandhi showed himself weaving his own Khadi cloth and refused to buy British clothes to resist the British who destroyed the Indian spinning industry, Modi resorted to plogging on Chennai beach to promote Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan.While Gandhi’s quotes – the most famous being “Be the change that you want to see in the world” was (and is) talked about all over the word, recently at “Howdy Houston” in USA, Modi spoke in Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Bengali, Gujarati and Punjabi with no teleprompter to convey to the largely Indian audience that all is well in India (read Kashmir) to a thunderous ear splitting applause. Both could read their audience very well and both have the ability to mesmerise their audience.

1. International relevance

In the whole of Indian history ranging from Lord Rama to this day, Gandhi and Modi are the two persons whose identity is synonymous with India outside of India.True there are others Indian stalwarts such as Jawaharlal Nehru, B R Ambedkar, Sachin Tendulkar, Mother Teresa, Amitabh Bachchan – to name only a few, but only Gandhi and Modi are able to achieve the mass appeal and gain immense respect both inside and outside India. The entire world recognises Gandhi and Modi. There are many who love them, many who hate them, many who challenge them, many who envy them, but, the world can’t ignore them. Winston Churchill’s immense dislike and aversion of Gandhi only made him more famous worldwide and Gandhi accepted it ever so smilingly. Similarly the likes of Imran Khan by blabbering about Modi is only making him even more powerful.

If Gandhi was still with us today, don’t you think he might have nodded his head in the affirmative to some of the actions of Modi? Do we see a comparison between Gandhi and Modi? Let me leave you thinking about it.