Narendra Modi sweeps general elections: Know the man on the brink of becoming next PM

Mumbai: Next Indian prime minister Narendra Modi’s journey in the public life began as a pracharak in the RSS way back in 1970. Narendra Damodardas Modi, who was born on September 17, 1950 at Vadnagar in Gujarat’s Mehsana district, participated actively in the anti Emergency movement in 1977.

Third out of six children born to Damodardas Mulchand Modi and his wife Heeraben, Mr Modi belongs to a lower middle-class household. His father sold tea at a local railway station, helped by young NaMo. His mother worked as a domestic help.

Modi’s initiation into the RSS was reportedly incidental. It is said that at the age of 12, he used to go to the local railway station to meet soldiers heading for the Sino-Indian border for war.

At 17, he was made to marry Jashodaben. He took off soon after for the Himalayas on a spiritual journey. Since then he has only returned home for brief spells.

According to his poll affidavit, he did his graduation from the Delhi University and PG in Political Science from the Gujarat University. Mr Modi’s innings in active politics began at the age of 37, when he joined the BJP in 1987.

Within a year, he was made the general secretary of the Gujarat unit. He is credited for playing a major role in helping the saffron party to establish its base in Gujarat and bringing about its first victory in the state in 1995. Amid grumbles in the state unit that he was acting as the 'Super CM', he was moved out of Gujarat to take on a party post at the national level. He was made the BJP national secretary in1995. During the 1996 General Elections, he was entrusted with leading the party's campaign in Himachal, Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh. And two years later, he was entrusted the job of general secretary in the saffron party.

Again, three years later, he was made the Chief Minister after Keshubhai Patel's resignation over the BJP's defeat in bypolls for two seats. A major Hindu-Muslim riots broke out in the state the next year. Mr Modi was accused of not doing anything to rein in the violence and, by a few, of even being complicit in the violence primarily directed at Muslims. A political pariah in the aftermath of 2002, he was even denied a visa by the US in 2005 for “violating” the tenets of religious freedom. He got a boost in 2012 when British High Commissioner James Bevan called upon him for a meeting, which signaled his growing acceptance by the West. In December 2012, he won a record third term as Gujarat CM. In a sign of his national ambitions, he made his victory speech in Hindi not Gujarati. Amid strengthening signs of his growing clout, Mr Modi had lunch with EU ambassadors in February 2013. And in September 2013, the BJP anointed him its PM candidate.