Opinion Out of my mind: Fathoming the PM

The PM launched many initiatives and was on a 24x7 active mode in the first six months. In the new year came the surprises.

Narendra Modi, Nepal, UPA government, National Congress, Modi Nepal, Narendra modi, iecolumnist, yubaraj ghimire, The Indian Express

Meghnad Desai

September 6, 2015 02:29 AM IST First published on: Sep 6, 2015 at 02:29 AM IST

Modi tried to invoke soft-power diplomacy between the two countries tied by a special bond of culture, history, religion and civilisation. (Source: PTI photo)

Narendra Modi

During the last month, I was in four different countries. In all of them, the main issue in my conversations has been Narendra Modi. Investors and politicos are keen to fathom his style, his team and the prospects of his success. Overlapping with the severe setback President Xi Jinping has received over the last two weeks, people ask whether Modi can deliver what he promised.

Narendra Modi is a rare politician since he became PM and MP at the same time. He knew nothing of Delhi politics, of deals and bargains. He came to the top by a most unorthodox route. He thought that having a majority in the popularly elected House meant he could have his way. He promised the earth and the voters, tired of the failures of UPA-II, bought his story.

The very high expectations that people had have been realistically revised. The PM launched many initiatives and was on a 24×7 active mode in the first six months. In the new year came the surprises. The Delhi defeat and the furore following Obama visit and the “Rs 10-lakh” suit put NM on the defensive. In my view he has become overly worried about being seen to be business-friendly. The bad rainfall and farmers’ suicide further threw the BJP into confusion. The land Bill the BJP wanted was easily caricatured as anti-kisan. In fact it is the land Act 2013 which will prevent any prospect of kisans exiting their hard life and getting well-paying jobs in factories. But the Congress is attached to kisans, whom their policies have kept backward by retarding manufacturing for 67 years. A way has to be found around RG’s anti-growth ideology.

Modi has seen that discretion is the better part of valour. He has dropped his land Bill since Congress would not even let him table it. Modi is a federalist. States can do what Centre cannot. His policy can be achieved by allowing the states to fashion their own land-selling policy. The Congress won a victory by its guerrilla tactics, but a way has been found around it by the PM deploying creative federalism.

We are beginning to make sense of the PM. People started thinking of him as Superman but that was naive. In a democracy, especially the Indian one, things take time. Reform has to be consensual. As an outsider to the Delhi politics, Modi is on a steep learning curve. His withdrawal of the land ordinance shows that he is a quick learner. But he needs a political adviser like Ahmed Patel to warn him of dangers ahead — an OROP or FTII which can erupt suddenly.

The real secret which has now been revealed after 15 months is that Modi is a moderate conservative who wants institutions to stay as they are but work better. He is not a passionate Rightist reformer. He does not want to privatise. He likes the State-Market mix. He just wants to make the public sector enterprises more efficient. He believes he can do this by Executive action.

India has emerged as the fastest growing economy with low inflation. Ease of doing business is getting better. FDI is coming in large amounts. Can achche din be far behind ?

# Narendra Modi