Narendra Modi vs the Dynasty: Contrasting Ideas of India

[Gus]

^that's stretching it too far. How many had to leave because of threats? A few may have left for economic opportunities, but enterprising folks from that community always spread out with civil services etc.

[johneeG]

[..]
Imagine a scenario where BJP followed thru on its promise about Ram Mandir. It would have made the entire Bharat do a pilgrimage to that location (if you have any doubt check the Rama Silas that came from every village in Bharat). This would have reconnected the UP Hindus with rest of Bharat and made them self-aware. This reconnect would have happened in all "castes" (I am using this word consciously) of UP.
[..]

This analysis is wrong. The reason BJP lost is because the "India Shining" campaign was a pure lie. Nowhere India was shining. It was only shining in the imagination of BJP leaders' heads.

Saar,
do you really think that parties win or lose solely based on election campaign?!! Voters may be naive, but not so foolish. Election campaign may swing a few undecided votes, but will it decide the election itself?

Also, even if India was not shining, it was certainly better governed and ruled than previous regimes, no? So, why would people not vote for NDA?

It seems to me that people were disenchanted with BJP and moved to other parties. Remember, BJP came to power in surcharged mood(RJB and Kargil) and lost when it was just a routine election...

Another factor is anti-incumbency. Voters had already voted for NDA twice(or thrice).

It is interesting that ABV(who lectured on Raj Dharma) lost, while Modi won...

[Theo_Fidel]

Suprantik,

WB maybe further along the curve but have you seen the matrimonial from WB. Simply reek of caste divisions. I would hesitate to say WB is free of caste divisions.
And wasn't there an entire war in Midnapore recently over caste issues, with clashes eventually involving the Maoists even as it got more brutal.

And I will trumpet south TN all I like. It has gotten to be prosperous with little help or support, mostly through reform and hard work.

[Hari Seldon]

^^^ Wah ji wah. So much for the pious concern about wanting to learn about NM's idea of India. Esp after "deleted.... wrong crowd".

Yawn and move on. Only. Peace.

[peter]

^that's stretching it too far. How many had to leave because of threats? A few may have left for economic opportunities, but enterprising folks from that community always spread out with civil services etc.

Bal Thackeray made his career by harassing all the iyers and iyengars in Bombay. There was a big exodus. Ask a Tamilian from Mumbai.

[peter]

[..]
Imagine a scenario where BJP followed thru on its promise about Ram Mandir. It would have made the entire Bharat do a pilgrimage to that location (if you have any doubt check the Rama Silas that came from every village in Bharat). This would have reconnected the UP Hindus with rest of Bharat and made them self-aware. This reconnect would have happened in all "castes" (I am using this word consciously) of UP.
[..]

This analysis is wrong. The reason BJP lost is because the "India Shining" campaign was a pure lie. Nowhere India was shining. It was only shining in the imagination of BJP leaders' heads.

Saar,
do you really think that parties win or lose solely based on election campaign?!! Voters may be naive, but not so foolish. Election campaign may swing a few undecided votes, but will it decide the election itself?

Common man was pissed off for several reasons from BJP. Friends told me in UP the crime rate was very high. Even though police is a state subject every one blamed Vajpayee for atrocious law and order problem and masses voted for anyone but BJP. In other northern states too there was large scale dis enchantment with BJP because there policies really did not percolate down. The cake was ofcourse "India Shining". All somebody had to ask was are you as an Indian shining and answer was usually no.

Also, even if India was not shining, it was certainly better governed and ruled than previous regimes, no? So, why would people not vote for NDA?

If your life has no positive impact because of govt policies how long would you vote for them?

[peter]

Suprantik,

WB maybe further along the curve but have you seen the matrimonial from WB. Simply reek of caste divisions. I would hesitate to say WB is free of caste divisions.
And wasn't there an entire war in Midnapore recently over caste issues, with clashes eventually involving the Maoists even as it got more brutal.

And I will trumpet south TN all I like. It has gotten to be prosperous with little help or support, mostly through reform and hard work.

Wake up! You sound like those mullahs and christians who say that their religion has no caste yet they don't let the SC/ST christians/muslims buried in the cemeteries of high caste christians / muslims or let these backwards attend the same churches.

[SwamyG]

TN clan and caste still rules....Irrespective of several reform movements, casteism is rampant

Swamy,

Why are you singling out TN as though things are worse here. I know you don't mean it but you do tend to look down on TN just a bit when you say these things.

Seriously? I mean seriously? First I do not look down upon any caste, ethnicity, lingual group, gender or State among many other things. An unnecessary information - I do look down upon arrogant people. The only reason I bring in TN is because you and RamaY were talking about S.TN. So do you expect me to bring in Assam, Gujarat and Bihar into the discussion? If I am talking about Hindu reforms, I do not bring in Islam or Christianity. If I am talking about Islam reforms, I do not bring Hinduism ityadi. And please stop speculating and jumping to conclusions about me - unless you are kidding or chit-chatting. I do agree with some of your observations about BRF and recent trends.

[SwamyG]

But is'nt TN the first example of a state where Brahmins were booted out , almost like Kashmir, by the dravida nationalists?

Sought of an ethnic cleansing of a mild proportion?

Nope. Wrong. There is nothing mild about any ethnic cleansing. Sure, brahmins were targeted with insults and ridicules; there are cases when the rhetoric was to cut the poonal (janaiv/sacred thread) of brahmins, but nothing like J&K. This kind of unreasonable and disproportionate comparison is betrayal and phoo-phooing the horror that happened to the Pandits of J&K.

There is no booting off brahmins from TN. Sure, some brahmins left TN for greener pastures.

[member_23629]

^^ It is amazing what social engineering of Gora missionaries managed to do to Tamils. They pounced upon the Brahmins, who at one time were being cursed by the church as the biggest obstacle in conversion of Tamils. How the church managed to manipulate Tamils into booting out the Brahmins -- the custodians of culture and spiritual literature -- is a story by itself. With no Brahmins left in the state, the church thought it would be a cakewalk to convert the Tamils.

[SwamyG]

^^^
I repeat....there was no booting out the brahmins. True, the Christian missionaries did think if they could convert the brahmins, the rest of the people would follow. Jean-Antoine Dubois was one such infamous missionary, who attempted it and failed miserably. He gave up his tactics and wrote a book, which was then hotly contested by other missionaries.

[RamaY]

And I will trumpet south TN all I like. It has gotten to be prosperous with little help or support, mostly through reform and hard work.

This is exactly what is needed. I only hope that such S.TN loyalty is to Bharat and not some Vatican or Mecca.

If this the yard stick to punditry then every nook and corner of Bharat has many Theos who has gotten to prosperity with little help or support mostly thru hard work. That said one need not reform to get prosperity, especially the kind of reform that makes the Bharatiya a slave of non-indic asuric ideology.

By this measure there are more Gujaratis who came to prosperity in the past 10 years and they are voting for NM with all the confidence that a S.TN-vadi has in say DMK or Congress or AIDMK. Then how can a S.TN-vadi be more intellectual and honest when s/he says that S.TN is prospered only either due to (sic) secularism or western-liberalism?

Most importantly how can S.TN still stuck in casteism, especially in the matters of democracy and governance? Does it mean even after reform (whatever that is), prosperity etc., the S.TN individuals attach to their castes to the extent that some how only minority appeasing C-system parties are acceptable to them, but not the Hindu-fanatic NM even though it is Hinduism that allegedly gave birth to Casteism?

Am I the only who sees bigotry, arrogance and asatya in this line of thought?

[RamaY]

But is'nt TN the first example of a state where Brahmins were booted out , almost like Kashmir, by the dravida nationalists?

Sought of an ethnic cleansing of a mild proportion?

Nope. Wrong. There is nothing mild about any ethnic cleansing. Sure, brahmins were targeted with insults and ridicules; there are cases when the rhetoric was to cut the poonal (janaiv/sacred thread) of brahmins, but nothing like J&K. This kind of unreasonable and disproportionate comparison is betrayal and phoo-phooing the horror that happened to the Pandits of J&K.

There is no booting off brahmins from TN. Sure, some brahmins left TN for greener pastures.

SwamyG garu,

You are comparing Dates with Bananas.

In TN, the ONLY Brahmins were harassed by the so-called secularists, liberals and Atheists which are the main reason for the current Banana Republic.

On the other hand in the Dates land, all Hindus were harassed as prescribed by the desert religion.

If you want to compare dates and dates, you should compare JK with some of the North Eastern states where Christianity was the overt ideology and purpose.

[Gus]

^that's stretching it too far. How many had to leave because of threats? A few may have left for economic opportunities, but enterprising folks from that community always spread out with civil services etc.

Bal Thackeray made his career by harassing all the iyers and iyengars in Bombay. There was a big exodus. Ask a Tamilian from Mumbai.

why are you bringing in bal thackeray's anti-tamil stance and activities in - to support a claim that DMK etc made a brahmin exodus out of TN (something almost like a pandit exodus out of Kashmir)?

What are you trying to say?

The current Dravida party in power in TN is under the iron grip of a brahmin woman who is not a self-hating/self-negating type either.

[svenkat]

The tamizh brahmanas are hardly homogenous.N.Srinivasan's India Cements,TVS,Amalgamations,CTS are multi-thousand crore empires.Chindu,Chemplast,Kumudam,Ananda Vikatan are Brahmin owned.There are innumerable brahmin mid size businesses(ranging from few crores to few hundred crores).

Brahmanas have been discriminated NOT persecuted.They live as part of tamizh population and are the undisputed elite of Madras though an extremely sophisticated elite who never advertise their 'brahminness' nor do they EVER deny it.You will find any number of writers(including tamizh writers),musicians,artistes,actors etc among tamizh brahmanas.

Even the discrimination is limited only to govt education and govt jobs,no where else.Even among the general populace,the community is highly respected,second to none.We should get the facts right.

Yes,a chunk of people migrated to Bombay,it is undeniable.even there,many went for central govt jobs.Also a substantial migration came from Palakkad who had migrated from TN three to five hundred years back.

Also,it is a fact during British times,the tamizh brahmins despite their 'racial hetrogenity' identified themselves with 'Aryans'.Infact,'educated' brahmins throughout India identified themselves with 'Aryans' because of linguistic similarities of English with Sanskrit and ALSO because in every part of India,the Brahmanas are lighter skinned than others.This is no doubt due to occupational differences but also to selective marriage ties.Also the skin colour gets progressively darker from North West to South East.Also tamizh has an ancient classical language tradition and tamils had lost political power to muslims in 15th century and the muslims were defeated by Vijayanagara chieftains from KA and AP.

This had led to significant brahmana migration from AP,KA and MH who were not sufficiently sensitised to the linguistic sensibilities of tamizh literati and all these contributed to tamizh resurgence.One must distinguish between generic dravidian movement of majority non-brahmin castes(for education and jobs including Arcot Mudaliar,Raja of Panagal(telugu),Periyar(kannadiga settled in TN) and the tamizh nationalism which was against stifling of tamizh in 500 yrs of non-tamil rule.The stifling was not deliberate,but ineviable.Infact some of the most unreasonable dravidian leaders like Periyaar were non-tamil and they had their own agendas which stemmed from the fear of majority tamizh rule as many of the tenants and labourers were from tamizh castes.

Thus DMK and ADMK exhibit two conflicting traits-one solidarity with the non-dvija(almost the entire population of South India barring rajus who were also included in the non-brahmin movement.even the nairs who had sambandham relationships with namboodris were initially part of non-brahmin movement) and the particular tamizh sub-nationalist streak which claims that telugus,malayalis and kannadigas have been infiltrated too deeply by Aryan thought and language) and the third view that inspite of dravidian,tamizh particularities that TN is part of the larger Hindu civilisation which itself is a 'joint venture' of 'Aryan and dravidian' language speakers-the original synthetic-composite civilisation of India.

Narendra bhai has to reach out to this world-a complex mix of dravidian,tamizh,hindu sensibilities and this has counterparts in KL,AP,KA and even MH.Thats why the dravidian patriarch sent condolences to Bal Thackerays family recalling their warm association.And thats why Surjit Singh Barnala and mu.ka. share a great relationship forged in their common antipathy against 'Brahminical domination' in days of yore.

Even TN-KA tensions seem to be a faint echo of ancient differences between two dravidian branches-Sugriva and Ravana in their relationship to Sri Rama and vibhishanas 'backstabbing' of Ravana.(mu.ka. never tires of portraying himself as ravana or mahabali and ADMK as veedanan(vibhishanan).Infact Jaya is portrayed as Mohini avatara(vattamudum kazhugu vasanthasenaiyudan azhivatha dravida inam-the scheming bitch vasanthasena in the mu'ka. penned movie manthirikumari(or was it manohara) where the second wife schemes against the son of the first wife,should the dravida race be destroyed by this scheming *****,Oru thai makkalaka vaazhum makkalai pirithaalum choozhchi-the scheming ploys to divide the tamizh people who live as children of same mother).Ofcourse,the scoundrel can never do any instrospection that the Congress of yore only wanted rule of law,respect for diversity,(or the caste hierarchies within tamizh people)that had the Justice party remained in power Karu could not have made any headway in that rao bahadur client -master system of the British.

Yet Karu has been checkmated by Cong,humiliated and 'defanged'.To be fair to him,after he has been caught red handed after his looting,he now seems to be a reformed person as age catches up with him and also after having been in the thick of things for long,he seems to finally embraced the profound themes underlying Hinduism.

But still there are issues-TN-KA water dispute,the unconstitutional TN amendment on reservation on which SC has reserved judgement,the resentment in KA and KL over what is perceived as tamizh chauvinism,the Sinhala chauvinism denying justice to tamils in Northern SL.

We must not forget that Sri Rama,Ravana,Sugriva,Vibhishana relationships were but a moment in Treta Yuga.Sanatana Dharma deals in kalpas,parardhas,manvantaras and yugas.Even Sri Rama,greatest 'nara' that he was was one avatara of Vishnu,Devi,Iswara,Karthikeya,Ganapathi have had multiple avataras and Sanatana Dharma neither starts nor ends with Sri Rama.

Political India is not limited by any means to BJP.Narendra bhai is no SriRama.

Having made all this caveat,I want narendrabhai to lead Bharatha Varsha for 10 years for justice and progress to all and appeasement of none and to rid Bharatha varsha of dynastic cults,chauvinism of all sorts and the cancer of corruption eating up India.

[SwamyG]

RamaY: I did not initiate the comparison. I pointed out that the comparison is wrong in the first place. And TN brahmins were not harassed like what is being portrayed here.

[RamaY]

Good points svenkatji!

I wonder how come a S.TN "reformed", castist, prosperous individual becomes a secular liberal where as a Gujarati, Hindu, castist and prosperous individual is fanatic and narrow-minded?

I also wonder how come it is the right thing for castist, poor, women raping, uncivic Indians to have leadership of only C-system leaders like MK, Mullah-M, Lalloo, Nitish, Biju, Owaisis, YSJagans etc where as it automatically becomes a NO NO to have Hindu fanatic leaders like Pravin Togadia, Raj Thakre etc., even though they can offer the same castist, poverty driven, women raping politrics?

Or is the real fear that the S.TN-vadis cannot indulge in their "reform" and "selective prosperity" under the leadership of nationalistic Hindus?

[Supratik]

Theo, casteism and caste are not the same thing. I said casteism is virtually dead in Bengal but yes when people advertise for arranged marriages they give caste just like an Italian-American would advertise for another Italian if they had arranged marriages. However, if TN were so advanced pray why do they have so many caste based parties. I think TN has still a long way to go. Coming back to NM his formula has transcended casteism in Gujarat. Otherwise the Patels would have defeated him.

JohneeG, Can you clearly formulate how Vajpayee could have buillt a grand temple at Ayodhya? Please use realistic formulas.

[disha]

WB maybe further along the curve but have you seen the matrimonial from WB. Simply reek of caste divisions. ...

Theo, lets take something that hits home. Can you offer your daughter in marriage (arranged) to somebody who is cleaning toilets for making the daily wage (janitors) and from a different religion (and even better a different nationality and speaking a different language). If you do not have a daughter, pick your son and have him married to girl from that family (as arranged marriage) and definitely invite them and their folks for all your social gatherings and definitely go there along with your relatives for their social gatherings.

Looking at matrimonials and deriving casteism out of it reeks of sheer ignorance, inexperience, lack of empathy and a certain degree of arrogance. Do not take the pretence of "I will allow my kids to follow their choices"., at that stage you are washing yourself of responsibility and arrogantly foisting your ideas of society on others (reeks of sheer ignorance, lack of empathy and a certain degree of arrogance).

[Surya]

as a descendent of Palakkad brahmins who migrated to bombay- the stories I heard were that after graduation - there were no jobs in tN. Brahmins had to fight for the crumbs on sarkari stuff.

Meanwhile back in shining Bombay - jobs were not getting filled with graduate reqmnts

So they packed their suitcases and came in and 2 weeks later got a job in Unilever's marketing department.


as for the sena's nautanki - while they did keep their heads low and did not wear the maddrassiness publicly - there was no exodus. they had moved from Mahim to Vile parle - but at least in those days the SS was not abig factor there. things calmed down in a week or two.

[Theo_Fidel]

And please stop speculating and jumping to conclusions about me - unless you are kidding or chit-chatting.

SwamyG, my speculation was truly off base and I should have known better than to accuse you unjustly. Accept my apologies.

[SwamyG]

No problemO. All is well that ends well

[RamaY]

Was talking to a relative in coastal Andhra, who is active in society.

His view is that Jagan's support base is 26% SC/STs, 4% Brahmins and 6% reddys. When asked why Brahmins vote for a Christian missionary like Jagan, his point was TINA. Definitely NO to congress, CBN is untrustworthy and BJP is unwinnable.

On the other hand if TDP can join hands with BJP, this 4% vote will be with CBN. But CBN is his own worst enemy

Another indication is that if NM is declared the PM candidate there is a high chance of BJP winning minimum majority on its own.

[RamaY]

Theoji,

Since S.TN is your base..

Whose side S.TN will stand in the fight of brothers, The Russian or Madurai Naik? Even though Madurai Nayaka built the base there, the high-command's candidate is making good progress there. Will Madurai go for short term appeasement or will it support its bhumi-putra?

[Mahendra]

Any one apart from Modi because the people from South TN dont want it to be like Gujarat

Well, lemme think, perhaps Laloo will be a winnable candidate, you see, he is a clown, he is corrupt to the core, has the right caste combination, is sikkular and has the dynasty's blessings. He may not turn South TN into Gujarat but will surely turn it into the Bihar of the 90s

[RamaY]

Mehdi,

We are going to see many more revelations before 2014 Bliss to not to drink all your beer and eat all your popcorn yet.

[Sushupti]

VIce-President Hamid Ansari and Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi at a meeting in New Delhi on Monday.

[Hari Seldon]

The meaning and implications of Moditva

If there's only one article you were to read today, I'd say this one should be a contender. Defines Moditva very well indeed, I'd say. Grand in its scope yet realistic in its approach. Or so I hope.

[Singha]

I like NaMo because he usually keeps silent, does not take the media bait and when he speaks which is not often talks sense.

only that skill has allowed him to survive a decade of media baiting and attacks.

now if only he could organize a "ramaiah JEE kamandu" type class and course notes for his brethen in the BJP and RSS to follow the same SOP, the world would be a better place.

[Sushupti]

THE THATCHER PARALLEL

http://centreright.in/2013/01/the-thatc ... OudLeTfg44

[RamaY]

Singha ji,

I have a feeling that everything will come at the right time.

Just because Rama was set out to Vanavas to kill Asuras, he didn't go for Ravana's head directly. He took nice 13 years from the day he left Ayodhya to the day Sitadevi is abducted.

The 13 yrs were not wasted though. They were spent in the company of Rishis who donated all their tapas to Rama. If Rama killed Ravana, it is due to the penance of many many Rishis.

Anyways, if NM is the Yajna purusha then the Yajna is being done by countless Bharatiyas. They all are praying for the resurgence of Bharat for generations.

[ramana]

Why did Mohan Bhagwat have to talk knowing he would be misquoted? All it did was divert attention away from the issue at hand?

And who is this Bapu guy commenting on Indian women and rape victims. Is he out of his mind?
Again diversion.

If you cant say something good shut up.

-----------
RamaY check your e-mail.

[Arjun]

^ Modi is what 62+ ? Don't think there is as much luxury to wait around...

I am glad over the last couple of years we have Centreright.in, Niticentral and occasionally Firstpost for the Intellectual firepower to back Modi....

We need more intellectuals (of the non-JNU variety) articulating their stance publicly. The 'left intellectuals' who dominate mainstream media are absolutely no match in IQ to the ones on the Right, but the sheer numbers on the Right are still low which is what needs to change.

[member_20317]

Why did Mohan Bhagwat have to talk knowing he would be misquoted? All it did was divert attention away from the issue at hand?

And who is this Bapu guy commenting on Indian women and rape victims. Is he out of his mind?
Again diversion.

If you cant say something good shut up.

ramana ji, I echo your feelings and understanding w.r.t. the need for public figures like RSS chief and Prominent Babas earlier seen with Senior Sangh figures, to take care to avoid misuse of their comments, directly or indirectly. Also I am thankful to you for bringing it up in the right thread considering Asaram Bapu is based in Gujarat and has been reported by media to be involved in wrong doings and apparently cleared by the Gujarat State law and order apparatus.

I would however request you to kindly clear my confusion. What exactly were the wordings that Asaram Bapu ji used. I have looked around and the following is the only thing I found and this particular clip was on all the net based outlets.

Its just that I do not want to end up shooting someone when I do not have even a prima facie cause.

ravi_g Post subject: Re: Delhi Rape Victim Dies-Express your outrage.Posted: 07 Jan 2013 14:16


http://www.timesnow.tv/INDIA/Asaram-Bap ... 418333.cms

The crawler quote is presented below for your kind reference:
Quote:
'She was travelling in a white bus. When the rapist assaulted her. My heart did pain, but if the victim would have taken 'Diksha' then this would not have happened to her. And even if one of the accused had taken 'diksha' then he would have stopped others from doing so'

<sniped>

Added later:
It is the exact same clip on timesnow times of India and India today. India today goes a step further they do not have the clip of the quote the media is using with three strategically placed dots used at two place in the quote.

Last edited by ravi_g on 07 Jan 2013 18:54, edited 1 time in total.

[RamaY]

Arjun ji

Will give my experience.

The other day my kids were complaining that i would not speak to the point and instead I tell them stories which are open ended. They don't have time for my BS and they want to know my point in bullet points.

I told them "well I don't have a point. Even if I have I don't want them to see the world I see. I would rather they see the world from their perspective. I tell them the stories that give perspective of people who stood for different understanding of the same reality, reaping the benefits of their perspectives. Perhaps that is the point I was trying to convey. It is idiotic to rationalize the negative behaviors and outcomes. Then there is no correction mechanism for individuals or soceities. That is the worst enemy of a sharp mind, the rationalization of their negative thoughts (this is one thing my father cautioned me against all the time)"

They were quite for a long time... Then they said "I see your point". I hope they do.

[Arjun]

Vibrant Gujarat expo kicks off this weekend: Modi lines up top names for Vibrant Gujarat summit

[member_20317]

THE THATCHER PARALLEL

http://centreright.in/2013/01/the-thatc ... OudLeTfg44

Great read. Thanks.

“…By contrast this society would evidence concern for others, law and order, justice, fairness, honesty, integrity, openness, courage, a preparedness to take risks for fair rewards, enterprise, invention, intelligence, thoughtfulness, freedom, good sense, concern, knowledge, underlying convictions, mature restraint, self-confidence, loyalty, responsibility for others, self-respect, pride, vision, vibrancy, patriotism, inspiration and interest.

Above all, a willingness to support one’s country, the best for oneself and one’s family.

An optimism, a sense of fulfillment, a desire to reach maturity so that one is at peace with oneself and the world, and in a natural state of grace.”

All are points that need addressed. If NM wants to make a serious bid he should make sure he gets to speak and gets heard on exactly all of these points. The nation is crying for a motivational leader. The Sangh does not have one for the moment and Kongis have all lost credibility. This is the right time for him to start speaking up. Also he needs to ensure he cannot be trapped on the dalliances of his followers/friends even though this later requirement is going to be a bit tough.

[Anand K]

The CentreRight article has a few jarring notes:

It doesn't deal with Thatcher imposed "morality" and theological "justification" which was integral to the whole business. TI think a few here support "Dharmic Constitution" and Memes and all, but well.......
Thatcherism worked well, for a while.... before the diminishing returns and subsequent changes , in a UK with it's 80s demographics and economic structure and position in the world order (and as Unkil's poodle) AND Cold War imperatives. Without American influence backing the so-called voodoo economics things might have fared very different, no?

(BTW, what is a phrase like "Nehruvian consensus" in an article focusing on economic matters? I mean, you here this phrase when we talk about Indian Constitution, UCC, Fundamenal Rights and DPSPs etc. When it comes to economics, back then sans Rajaji and the Swatantra Party there was pretty much overwhelming support for the economic plans. Is it a snipe at YIKES secularism and media and the like? )

Lastly, Gujarat's economy of 2000-2012 (and before that decade) is hardly the same as late 70s Britain. IMO what happened in Gujarat was Modi utilizing his innate skills, his many years of experience as a back-office manager in Gujarat to remake key departments, close ranks up in the executive and consolidate power. The problems Indian economy faces now are not entirely because of some b00bs in the NAC (or DIE sellouts/traitors/RNIs). IMO these jholawaalahs are a symptom only..... voices and echoes for the basic problems in our society and rural economy. Something ABV Government tried to put in the backburner and paid for it....
Let's see what the plan is to deal with systemic and societial issues.

Regarding the Stepping Stones analogy, what is the constitution of "the well trained shadow cabinet" of Gujarat? I mean, it's all Modi, Modi and more Modi. Who else is considered even as a tail of this comet? Amit Shah? Really? Even in Nehru's days Morarji and LBS were highly visible and had their own standing. Like, nobody really doubted LBS would be the next PM when Nehru died right? Modi has a good media management team but that ain't the same I feel.

JMTC

[Sanku]

VIce-President Hamid Ansari and Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi at a meeting in New Delhi on Monday.

Oh no even Modi is a windbag onlee....

[Sanku]

now if only he could organize a "ramaiah JEE kamandu" type class and course notes for his brethen in the BJP and RSS to follow the same SOP, the world would be a better place.

NaMo's PR machine is handled by RSS onlee. Its just that the entire RSS+BJP_sangh parivar CAN NOT be run in the Modi mode. Modi is one part of the spectrum, many other cases have to be handled by others too.