This is exactly what was going on in my mind.
I'll be honest. I had lost all interest in politics until Mr. Narendra Modi hopped on to the national scene. My family has been a big-time BJP supporter for years but I personally had not found one leader in BJP - not even in any other party - who could inspire me after Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee retired. My attitude, much like most of the youth around, was that of indifference towards Indian Politics. But then Mr. Modi came forward. He had an impressive track record in Gujarat. I did understand even then that he thrives a lot on publicity but honestly, I did not find anything objectionable in that. I still don't. After all we in corporate world do understand that selling your work is just as important as doing good work. But, this works only if you do have some base of work and results to showcase.
Add to it that his entire agenda for the General Elections was based on "Development". His mission statement looked realistic. Many of the promises had a timeline of 10 years or more unlike the promises of 7 days / 30 days / 100 days as promoted by a certain new emerging popular rival fighting it out on an anti-corruption agenda. Mr. Modi got a clear mandate and since then he has worked on a lot of issues. He has been criticised as well as praised for everything he has done, or done away with. He has taken both in his stride and ignored what got into is way.
I'm neither a political expert, nor an economic analyst. But, as a layman whatever steps he took seemed beneficial in the long run. He was a pro in getting his messages across through various mediums. For instance, he introduced the "Beti bachao, Beti padhao" campaign and ensured that the females were in fore-front in the Republic Day Parade. He has been travelling across the world promoting "Make in India" and ensuring FDI deals for India. But it would be foolish to assume that all that FDI will enter India on the next day at one go. It would be foolish to assume "Achche Din" will come in one year. They both will take their own sweet time and will flow in slowly in their own comfortable speed.
Anyway, the point is that even though I still have all the trust in Mr. Modi's policies and strategy, I'm losing faith again in BJP. At this point, I sincerely believe that BJP might not be in power to see another term and further Mr. Modi's agenda; or reap its fruits just as well. And all this is not new to BJP even. They never make it another term in a row. But they don't learn either. The moment they get power, their tongues start wagging and they start waving their highly irresponsible saffron-coated flags. This time due to a full majority, they've gone full swing into beef-banning, Muslim bashing, RSS orthodox moral policing, etc. So much so that the entire country is debating on intolerance.
More than all this, what irks me is that Mr. Modi, the famed authoritarian, is absolutely quiet on that. Does he not understand that he needs to be on the PM chair at least two terms to fulfil what he has set out to do? Does he not understand from the Delhi and Bihar verdicts that such irresponsible behaviour from his party and their "associates" will not lead him to a second term in office? What exactly is keeping him from reigning in the motor-mouths and the obnoxious orthodoxes? Isn't it high time, he stops being so smug in his position and so confident in his work that he totally ignores the periphery? Isn't it time he salvages his reputation of a pro-development and anti-orthodox leader?
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