On This Day, 5 years ago Narendra Modi won 2014 polls and India got its ‘Modified’ PM
India is voting for the 17th Lok Sabha elections and has entered to the seventh and final phase of polling, that is scheduled on May 19. Well, India is all set to get its new Prime Minister and decide the fate of Narendra Modi. Interestingly, exactly five years ago, Bharatiya Janata Party’s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Damodar Das Modi had stunned many poll pundits by winning the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, also party won majority of Lok Sabha seat. BJP had emerged as the biggest single party mandate in 30 years.
The Congress, leading the UPA government for 10 years was ousted from the power and plunged to its lower ever winning seat tally of 44 in the Lok Sabha. The saffron party had won 282 seats in the Lok Sabha with a hike of almost 66 per cent. The party had fielded its candidates in 428 Lok Sabha constituencies.
However, the opposition played hard to oust the BJP from coming in power in 2014 Lok Sabha election. If we go through the numbers, the opponents argued that the party will get only 31 per cent votes while 69 per cent Indians were not in favour of the Modi government. However, the claims were seemed turned out as false.
So, here are 5 points that brought NDA government to power in Centre on May 16, 2014 and chose Narendra Modi as Prime Minister:
Corruption:
Under the 10-years old UPA government, corruption was a major anti-incumbency issue running into the 2014 Lok Sabha election. From the Commonwealth Games scam, the 2G spectrum scam, the coal scam, VVIP chopper scam, Adarsh scam and cash-for-vote scam and other, was a big battle for the government in 2014 polls.
Veteran Gandhian Anna Hazare-led Lokpal movement against the UPA government had mobilised the masses across the country. From civil rights to RTI activists formed the main body of the anti-graft campaign, that upsurge the public sentiments against the UPA government in the Centre.
Using the anti-graft campaign against the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh-led UPA governemnt, RSS and BJP introduced the longest-serving chief minister of Gujarat Narendra Damodardas Modi an non-corrupt leader.
Economy:
In 2004, when the Congress-led UPA government came to power claiming that BJP-led NDA government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee had failed to identify and address.
Then the economy was on peak as the then PM Manmohan Singh government introduced a series of public welfare schemes including right to work (MNREGA), right to education and massive farm loan waiver just before 2009 national polls.
Due to the dynamic ups and down in global economy under the Congress leadership it let to a "policy paralysis".
Modi-fied brand:
Well by the 2014 polls, the founder the BJP, LK Advani was told to take back seat as Narendra Modi emerged as the supreme leader in the BJP. Amit Shah was then given charge of Uttar Pradesh, where BJP was crawling since 1990s.
‘Ab Ki Baar Modi Sarkar’ was most chanted slogans in 2014 polls. Modi made "56-inch chest" remark at a public rally in Uttar Pradesh that became synonymous with "strong leadership" that Modi offered the BJP and it came in power in the Centre.
Youth and Aspiration:
When Modi kick started his 2014 poll campaign, he first lauched a scathing attack on the Congress-led UPA government accusing it of "insulting" Indian youth’s pride by offering doles in the form of MNREGA. Interstingly, at the time of 2014 poll, half of 81 crore voters were youth that under the age of 35.
Modi’s branding speech caught the eye of youth voters and they came out in large numbers to vote for Modi.
Rise of the Right:
As RSS and BJP’s ideology is said to be pro-Hinsutva’, the party made "appeasement of Muslims by the Congress" one of its poll planks. Around 45,000 shakhas of RSS also contributed to the new wave of right-wing supporters. Modi refusing to wear a skull cap at an event in Gujarat served as a proof of his strong Hindutva credentials.
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