Barackface: Gujarat

Showing posts with label Gujarat. Show all posts

Thursday, July 18, 2013

India 2014: Doing The Math For Nitish

हिन्दी: देश के उप राष्ट्रपति मोहम्मद हामिद अंसारी पटना में पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री सत्येन्द्र नारायण सिन्हा(छोटे साहब) की 94वीं जयंती पर आयोजित व्याख्यानमाला श्रंखला पर पूर्व सांसद किशोरी सिन्हा और मुख्यमंत्री नीतीश कुमार के साथ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

(Published in Vishwa Sandesh)

India 2014: Doing The Math For Nitish
By Paramendra Bhagat

India is the most colorful, interesting democracy on earth. I read about Indian politics pretty much daily. And I am half Indian like Barack Obama is half white, the other half of me being Nepali. The impending 2014 elections in India are of tremendous interest to me. I have a feeling 2014 might throw up a strong non-BJP, non-Congress candidate for Prime Minister.

My half Indian part is Bihari. And so there is some bias there. But Nitish has got to be my favorite politician on the planet today. I say that as Barack Obama’s first full time volunteer in all of New York City. Nitish is my Lula.

I see the political arithmetic going Nitish Kumar’s way. Let’s do the math. This is one scenario that could unfold.

Congress 150
NCP 10

BJP 130
Shiv Sena 10
AIADMK 10

Congress + BJP = 310

JD(U) 30
Trinamool Congress 20
SP 20
BSP 20
DMK 20
CPI(M) 15
BJD 15
TDP 10

Total = 150
Others = 84

150 + 84 + 150 (Congress) = 384
150 + 150 = 300 And that is a comfortable majority. Nitish would not need the "Others" but could easily get most of them.

You are looking at a scenario where Nitish is Prime Minister, Modi is the Leader Of The Opposition, and Rahul Gandhi is the new Mulayam Singh, extending outside support to a Nitish led government. Rahul just so happens to be a Nitish fan, and Rahul has the option to wait.

Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) was the biggest component of the National Democratic Alliance after the BJP and Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress was the biggest component of the United Progressive Alliance after the Congress. Both Mamata and Nitish have walked away. There is now talk of a Federal Front. Like the JD(U) likes to say, the only difference between them and the BJP is that the JD(U) is in power in one state and the BJP is in power in four. As in, the BJP is just another regional party, there is no national party in Indian politics anymore.

To me more compelling than the political arithmetic is the person of Nitish Kumar and what he has done in Bihar. What the guy has managed is sheer magic. Achieving a 13% growth rate in a landlocked, primarily agricultural state that is flood prone is no joke. Bihar used to be the joke in India. Now it has become the pride of India.

I have been plenty impressed by what Narendra Modi has done in Gujarat. But there are at least five other states like Maharashtra that were already well off and have shown spectacular growth rates. Modi is not alone. Bihar’s turnaround is bigger news. Not only that, Bihar is the top growing state in all of India, and Nitish Kumar is the top performing Chief Minister in all of India. Gujarat is a better economy than most countries in Europe, but then India deserves to become a world power, and there is no getting there unless you can lift up the poor masses that are huddled in Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa.

Nitish beats Modi on the economic front, and that is Modi’s one selling point. On the social front there is no competition. An India where Hindus and Muslims live together in peace and prosperity as equals is the only India that can hope to become a superpower. I was born a Hindu, I became a Buddhist later, and my family is still Hindu. Hindu pride makes tremendous sense, but so does pride in Islam, as does pride in Buddhism for Buddhists, pride in Christianity for Christians. There are more English speakers in India than in either Britain or America. The richest Briton is Indian origin. The most successful ethnic group in America is Indian as measured by per capita family income. In Nitish Kumar’s Bihar Hindus and Muslims live together fine. India is an incredibly diverse country. It is so diverse it is not a country, it is a continent. You put America, Africa and Europe together and you get an India. Paying lip service to equality is no way to lift up that country. That equality has to be felt in the bones. There many would say Modi gets a failing grade, but Nitish gets an A+.

Nitish has done much for Bihar. But he has hit his limits there. The only way he can do more for Bihar is by staking a claim to national leadership. And I see the momentum building up for him.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

What Is Nitish Thinking?

There is no doubt in my mind Nitish is the best candidate for PM in India right now. But he has to want it. A non-Congress, non-BJP coalition of parties with outside support from the Congress could see Nitish in the chair. I can see such a configuration emerging.

BJP's rebuff of Nitish Kumar may cost it 20 Lok Sabha seats in 2014
Gujarat development under Narendra Modi is glass full of gas and no water: Cong
Gujarat government to seek death for former Narendra Modi aide Maya Kodnani
Nitish Kumar's latest swipe at Narendra Modi involves Gujarat riots
Shiv Sena appears to warn BJP against Narendra Modi for PM
No Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi clash for now
CPM demands Narendra Modi's resignation
JD(U) tears into Narendra Modi for 2002 Gujarat riots

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar chose to be more calibrated, emphasizing the compulsion why he could not accept Modi as PM, but without fixing a tough deadline for the BJP to sort out the issue. He conveyed his strong reservations on Modi to BJP leaders, party chief Rajnath Singh and leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley....... He also expressed apprehensions about the growing indication that Modi for all practical purposes may have already been anointed the BJP's choice for PM.

Shiv Sena warns of 'Mahabharata' if BJP ignores NDA allies
BJP won’t dump Modi for Nitish, NDA headed for split

"A diverse, pluralistic, multi-faith and multi-ethnic country can be led by only such person who has secular credentials and an inclusive outlook, and who can carry all sections of society," Kumar told his colleagues.

Nitish Kumar takes on Narendra Modi; hints at anti-Congress, non-BJP alliance in 2014
BJP plans to quit Nitish govt after Karnataka polls
Future with BJP tenuous, JD-U does the math
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar joins Facebook
Nitish Kumar denies getting closer to Congress
JD(U) dares BJP to withdraw support in Bihar

"Despite claims by the Congress and the BJP that they are national parties, there is nothing like that. We are ruling in one state while they are in power in four states... This is the only difference now," Tiwari, considered close to Kumar, said.

Nitish Kumar hits back at BJP over Gujarat riots
Modi doesn't need Nitish Kumar's certificate on secularism: BJP
Nitish Kumar's 10 jabs at Narendra Modi
"Rotten actor" Amitabh Bachchan identifies Black error
Amitabh Bachchan's Tuesday memoir: first day of shooting Coolie after accident

Monday, April 08, 2013

Hillary 2016, Gay Marriage, And Technology

Hillary Clinton 1 (Photo credit: Angela Radulescu)

I really like the idea of a woman president. That would be my number one reason to support Hillary. But my condition would be her running mate must be a woman, her Secretary of State must be a woman.

And you do want something cutting edge. Gay marriage as a federal proposition would be that cutting edge thing. This issue is more cutting edge than the idea of a woman president. But the two are kind of related. Both gays and women are sexual minorities in terms of how long they have been sidelined. They are but natural allies.

Hillary's weak point is technology. She famously said over a decade ago that she "can not think in front of a computer." Hillary is no Narendra Modi. Modi is tech savvy. But then Bill Clinton is not known for sending out emails, and the dude still presided over the dot com boom. It is because he balanced the budget. That basic arithmetic is still cutting edge politics. It should not be, but it is.

Like Nixon went to China, Hillary went to Burma. I think that is pretty cutting edge.

It is for tech entrepreneurs not the President Of The United States to hog the cutting edge in technology. So Hillary's weak point is not a weak point at all. All she has to do is assemble the right social media team and give them ample power. Old style fundraising and old style connecting and old style canvassing are passe. Obama 2008 is still cutting edge politics. She could simply rehire many of Obama's operatives, like Obama hired many Clintonistas once in power.

One person says Hillary Clinton’s no shoo-in
Chelsea Clinton opens door to run
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi at FICCI meet
Nitish Kumar takes a dig at Rahul Gandhi's 'beehive' remark
Rumor Mill: Google’s next big acquisition could be mobile messenger WhatsApp
Liquid Robotics launches new generation of wave glider ocean robots
Imran Khan's 'tsunami' may turn into 'whimper' due to internal rifts in party

Controversy in Wharton over inviting Narendra Modi as speaker
Why this Muslim-majority town in Gujarat voted for Modi's BJP
Rahul's visit: Traffic chaos in Mumbai
Narendra Modi steals the show at BJP's conclave
There's a growing interest in Narendra Modi as BJP's PM candidate, says Arun Jaitley
Amitabh Bachchan recollects old days on Facebook
All eyes on Narendra Modi as BJP National Executive mulls election strategy
Narendra Modi to address meet in US, on video
No visa, no worries: Narendra Modi finds alternative route to US
Finance minister misleading nation: Narendra Modi
Will neither reject nor endorse Narendra Modi: Maulana Mehmood Madani
Paras opens eyes momentarily
Deal on CJ-led govt almost finalized: Parties
Using judges for election does not violate separation of powers

Saturday, December 29, 2012

Modi Momentum

Modi has attracted a lot of attention since his poll win, but his very name crumbles the NDA. None of his key allies are excited. And people like Naidu are staying away for good.

There is a paradox here. Modi is the BJP's obvious candidate for PM. But Modi at the helm destroys the NDA. The BJP is left alone.

Modi did not field a single Muslim candidate in Gujrat. That is quite a statement. And it is hard to believe the RSS did not play a key role in the 2002 riots. The train fire might have been accidental.

What Is Nitish Thinking?
Nitish Might Not Have The BJP Option
Modi's Night
The Nitish Magic

English: Image of Narendra Modi at the World Economic Forum in India (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Nitish's Bihar overtakes Modi's Gujarat as fastest growing state in the country

10.9 per cent .... Bihar was the slowest growing state during 2001-05 period with GDP figure of 2.9 per cent. However, between 2006 and 2010, it grew at 10.9 per cent, becoming the fastest growing state and shedding the tag of BIMARU (an acronym for sick states)...... Gujarat was the fastest growing state between 2001 and 2005 with figure of 11 per cent. But during 2006 and 2010, its growth dipped to 9.3 per cent and was overtaken by Bihar and four other states -- Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Maharashtra and Orissa. ..... Average GDP growth of top five states was 9.10 per cent in 11th five year plan, up from 7 per cent in 10th plan and 5 per cent in 9th plan.

Modi's effort to rope in TDP and TRS into NDA fold falls flat

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi 's attempt to rope two major political parties in Andhra Pradesh - Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) - into the National Democratic Alliance fold has fallen flat..... Naidu has not been in good terms with Modi since the 2002 communal riots in Godhra. In fact, the TDP president was the first person to demand the sacking of Modi after Gujarat riots and had even threatened to withdraw support to the NDA then. Though he was pacified by senior BJP leaders like M Venkaiah Naidu, such was the animosity of Naidu towards Modi that he refused to nominate another TDP MP as the Lok Sabha Speaker, after the death of G M C Balayogi in a helicopter crash in March 2002, in protest against the Gujarat riots. ..... In August 2003, too, Naidu stalled the scheduled visit of Modi to Hyderabad to participate in Ganesh Nimajjan festivities on the grounds that it would trigger communal riots in the city. ..... Modi's strategy could be gathering the support of new allies to the NDA in the post-2014 election scenario as part of his efforts to prop up his candidature as the next Prime Minister. .... "Let us stick to our anti-Congress and anti-BJP stand and keep up our identity. We are gradually getting rid of our stigma which we got by allying with the BJP. Any inclination towards the BJP would damage our secular image," he told the party leaders

Narendra Modi being propped up in UP as BJP puts him alongside Vajpayee in hoardings

more than two dozen huge hoardings came up here with photographs of both Vajpayee and Modi..... the party may be accepting that Modi was its best bet for Lok Sabha 2014 ..... BJP MP from Lucknow Lalji Tandon has said he would be "more than happy" if Modi contests the Lok Sabha election from Lucknow, which was earlier held by Vajpayee....... admit that Modi was "by far the tallest leader in the BJP"..... "He is a very tall leader, has a clean image and had given an efficient administration to Gujarat" .... many BJP leaders feel that a development-led pro-Hindu branding of Modi could reap rich dividends in Uttar Pradesh

Can Modi Do More?

As he had done while choosing party office-bearers two years ago, Modi reduced the average age of the 17-member ministry from 65 to 55. ..... Modi has a definite plan for his new innings in Gujarat. He feels there has been enough focus on investment and manufacturing and now it should be on the training of skilled manpower, knowledge-sharing and modern technologies in agriculture. "Training of skilled manpower will be one of our main focus areas from now onwards," Modi ..... wrong selection of candidates and party infighting, apart from the opposition of state government employees to the Modi government because of certain policies, cost BJP around 15 seats. ..... BJP is estimated to have lost as many as eight seats to the anti-Modi voting by disgruntled state government employees. Among these eight seats were Godhra, Lunawada, Sojitra and three in Saurashtra. Modi had to pay for his uncompromising nature in this case. ..... Political pundits believe Modi might have reinvented himself finally as a development icon but in the next six months he will have to give a brand new spin to his slogans of "Development Without Discrimination" and "Sauno Saath, Sauno Vikas (Support of All, Development for All)" to strike a chord with voters nationally. For that to happen, changing his anti-Muslim image will also be crucial. ..... Modi did not field even a single Muslim candidate in the state Assembly polls. Further ammunition has been handed to his detractors by the latest National Development Council figures bracketing Gujarat with Uttar Pradesh and Bihar among four states where urban Muslims are poorest.

Narendra Modi steals the limelight at NDC meet
Next Stop Delhi?
Delhi gangrape victim took tuitions to pay for her education

Narendra Modi Keeps Away From Nitish Kumar At NDC

This time, though, it was different. Modi kept away from the 'gatecrash handshake' with Kumar who is known to live in dread of being ambushed by the Gujarat chief minister. ..... Modi has the stigma of 2002 riots that refuses to go away.

Special state status issue: Fireworks expected at NDC meet today

Emboldened by his comprehensive victory in the recent assembly elections, Modi is likely to adopt an extremely aggressive stance. The Centre, on its part, is likely to launch a counter-attack against Modi by citing that the state has been a laggard in alleviating poverty among minorities. .... Like Kumar, Patnaik has also been demanding a special status for his state.

Nitish refuses comment on Gujarat election results

With the boss silent on the issue, no leader, minister, office-bearer or spokesman of the Janata Dal (U) uttered a single word on Narendra Modi's hat-trick. .... He also took stock of the situation relating to changing of 72,000km of electricity wires in the state which are in bad condition. Out of this, 19,000km of wires have been replaced while work was in progress on the rest, he said. The meeting also reviewed renovation work in power plants at Kanti and Barauni and status of new power projects.

Nepal's exports to China surged four-fold in current fiscal
It’s time to move over from being Factory to the West

its manufacturing has to become ‘Germany to the East’ ..... aims at a share of manufacturing of 25% in the gross domestic product (GDP) by 2022, about 12-14% medium-term growth in the sector and creation of 100 million jobs by 2022. Currently, manufacturing accounts 15% share of the sector in the GDP against 34% in China and 40% in Thailand ..... India spends less than 1% of its GDP on R&D while it is 3.47% in Japan, 3.4% in South Korea, 2.81% for the US, and 1.55% for China. .... “India is the largest importer of defence equipment. And that is one sector where India should focus to develop domestic abilities”

India to become bigger economy than UK by 2017

India will overtake the UK by 2017 to become the largest economy in the Commonwealth...... Britain, which has reclaimed its place as the world’s sixth largest economy from Brazil, will however, be larger than France by 2022 .... The next decade will see the BRIC nations, Brazil, Russia, India, and China, cement their economic dominance, as Europe suffers a gradual decline in standing ..... Germany will decline two slots from fourth to sixth, but France and Italy will be the biggest losers. France is expected to fall from fifth to ninth, and Italy from eighth to 13th ..... Brazil will be fifth and Russia will have climbed two places to seventh. .... China will remain the world’s second biggest economy, but will have closed the gap on the US.

At least one or two world-size banks needed to compete globally: Chidambaram

China, which has three among the top 20 banks in the world. "Banks in the country are governed by a sound financial system, rules and a very strong regulator .... during the crisis, 1,000 banks had collapsed in the US, starting with Lehmann Brothers, but in India, not even one bank collapsed, whether it was in public sector, private sector or banks with national or regional footprints

No Easy Route if Assad Opts to Go, or to Stay, in Syria

President Bashar al-Assad of Syria sits in his mountaintop palace as the tide of war licks at the cliffs below. ... Explosions bloom over the Damascus suburbs. .. His country is plunging deeper into chaos. .... East of the palace lies the airport and a possible dash to exile, a route that some say Mr. Assad’s mother and wife may have already taken. ..... A Damascus-based diplomat said Monday that Mr. Assad, despite official denials, is “totally aware” that he must leave and was “looking for a way out,” though the timetable is unclear. .... “powerful people in the upper circle of the ruling elite in Damascus are feeling that an exit must be found.” ..... increasingly empowered security officials, whom one friend of the president’s has come to see as “hotheads.” ..... the mood in the palace is one of panic, evinced by erratic use of weapons: Scud missiles better used against an army than an insurgency, naval mines dropped from the air instead of laid at sea. ..... even if Mr. Assad wanted to flee, it is unclear if the top generals would let him out alive ..... “They speak of the rebels like dogs, terrorists, Islamists, Wahhabis,” the friend said, using a term for adherents to a puritanical form of Islam. “This is why he will keep going to the end.” ..... he mainly wants to be a hero fending off a foreign attack ...... critics say the Assads used four decades in power not to promote meaningful ethnic and religious integration, but to cement Alawite rule with a secular face. ....... To put down an Islamist revolt in the 1980s, Hafez al-Assad bulldozed entire neighborhoods and killed at least 10,000 people. The son now presides over a crackdown-turned-civil war that has killed four times that many, and counting. ..... Assad’s reformist impulses were always meant only to bring access to the luxuries and approval of the West .... grew up in Damascus, reached out to and married into the Sunni elite, and was even mocked in his ancestral village for his Damascus accent

Envoy Meets With Assad as Russia Seeks Distance

Russia, Mr. Assad’s most important foreign backer, was moving forward with plans to evacuate Russian diplomats and other expatriates. ..... Some Russian expatriates working in Syria were abducted this month. .... diplomats in Damascus would be evacuated with the help of special forces, if necessary. The authorities are also prepared to send 100 officers from a special armed unit of Russia’s foreign intelligence service, called “Screen,” which was last used to evacuate Russian diplomats from Baghdad in 2003. .... Moscow’s deeply pessimistic prognosis for the region.

Here's What The 'Agent-15' Chemical Weapon Probably Used In Syria Does To People

The Gas effects started [a] few seconds after the area was shelled. Right after the shelling, patients described seeing white gas with odor, then they had severe shortness of breath, loss of vision, inability to speak, flushed face, dizziness, paralysis, nausea and vomiting, and increased respiratory secretions. Doctors who treated patients said that patients had pinpoint pupils and bronchospasm. Patients were treated in a field hospital. Gas masks were not available...... Referred to as an "incapacitating" chemical in military circles, the worst known non-lethal reactions to high doses of BZ include stupor, hallucinations and "regressive" phantom behaviors such as plucking at one's hair and disrobing...... Agent-15 is not nearly as lethal as Assad's stockpile of nerve and blistering agents— Sarin, VX, and Mustard — which can kill from the mildest direct exposure.

Chemical war of words: Syrian govt, rebels trade accusations

Al-Qaeda-linked rebels allegedly used chemical weapons during a battle with government troops in the Darya district on the outskirts of Damascus, killing at least seven soldiers. .... it was yellow and caused death within an hour of being inhaled

Putin visits India, eyes arms sales, trade and political ties
"Fiscal cliff" talks turn sour, Obama threatens veto
Fiscal cliff: Barack Obama threatens to attack Republicans in inauguration speech
Barack Obama: I Dance Gangnam Style To Embarrass My Daughters
Gloomy predictions as Washington approaches the 'fiscal cliff'

"It's the first time that I feel it's more likely we'll go over the cliff than not," Sen. Lieberman said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” "If we allow that to happen it will be the most colossal consequential act of congressional irresponsibility in a long time, maybe ever in American history because of the impact it'll have on almost every American.” ..... “I believe the president is eager to go over the cliff for political purposes,” he said. “He senses a victory at the bottom of the cliff.” ...... “The truth of the matter is, if we do fall off the cliff after the president is inaugurated, he’ll come back, propose just what he proposed … and we’ll end up adopting it,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson, (R) of Georgia on Fox News. “Why not go ahead and act now?”

West Antarctica Warming Faster Than Thought, Study Finds

making central West Antarctica one of the fastest-warming regions on earth. .... a breakup of the ice sheet, over a period that would presumably last at least several hundred years, could raise global sea levels by 10 feet, possibly more.

“My final offer is this: nothing”
Tax fight sends GOP into chaos

Breaking Free: How Nitish Kumar Turned Bihar Into a Model of Indian Reform
From Bihar, a New Approach to Flood Control
Fall of Nitish govt is certain: Lalu Prasad
Nitish Kumar: The Chief Minister who changed Bihar
Nitish Kumar-ruled Bihar safer than Narendra Modi-led Gujarat: JD(U)
A Look Back: The Incredible Change in Bihar
Nitish Kumar: India’s Man from Hope?
Dramatic Change in India’s Poorest State
How Nitish Conquered Bihar
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar likely to consolidate Muslim vote bank after his Pak visit
Bihar bats for Nitish Kumar as PM
Nitish Kumar invites India Inc to Bihar
In driver's seat, Nitish Kumar moves Bihar into top gear
Nitish: Bihar migrants can never be a burden on anyone
Nitish Kumar: Engineering change in Bihar
Building on Bihar

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Modi's Night

The Talented Mr. Modi

a state poll that has taken on the flavor of a national referendum. ..... he will cement his position as India's leading opposition politician and its top contender to succeed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh ..... Modi is the messiah who will rid Indian politics of sloth, corruption, and petty identity politics. With his no-nonsense management style and inspirational leadership, only he can deliver the economic development Indians crave ..... For his equally vocal detractors, Modi is forever tarred by anti-Muslim riots that occurred 10 years ago ..... his reputation as the country's best economic administrator and most business-friendly politician .... the chief minister is that rarest of creatures in India: a politician more interested in public service than in pelf or promoting his progeny. .... In a land swaddled with red tape, Modi is seen as a go-getter. In a culture of inherited privilege -- where politicians tend to hand down power to their children like a family heirloom -- the chief minister comes from humble stock and has risen through dint of effort. He began his career helping an uncle run a railway-station tea stall in his hometown and then worked his way up the ranks of the Hindu-nationalist group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (National Volunteer Corps) and its sister organization, the BJP, before being catapulted to the chief minister's job in 2001. .... He's one of India's few politicians -- Singh is another -- whose declaration of a meager net worth (about $245,000) doesn't evoke guffaws of disbelief. .... The state has averaged double-digit growth rates over much of Modi's 11-year rule. With only 5 percent of India's population, last year Gujarat accounted for 16 percent of the country's manufacturing and 22 percent of its exports. The Economist calls it India's Guangdong. .... While much of India continues to suffer from potholed roads and daily brownouts, Gujarat offers investors modern highways and a reliable power supply. Many of India's tycoons have lavished praise on Modi for running an administration responsive to their needs. In 2008, Modi famously persuaded Ratan Tata to build the Nano, the world's cheapest car, in Gujarat after Tata Motors ran into land-acquisition troubles in West Bengal. Every two years, Indian and global businesses line up at the Vibrant Gujarat summit to pledge billions of dollars to the state in India's most high-profile investor gathering. Foreign companies that have set up shop in Gujarat under Modi, or announced plans to do so, include Abbott, Bombardier, Ford, Peugeot, and Suzuki. ....... a strong following among the pan-Indian middle class and the Indian diaspora. A poll by India Today this year declared Modi the country's top pick for prime minister: 24 percent of respondents chose him, compared to 17 percent who preferred Rahul Gandhi. ...... Traffic at a Google Plus "hangout" featuring Modi in August reportedly crashed the website's servers. Many of Modi's most fervent supporters are hypernationalists who seem to view opposition to him as unpatriotic. ..... garnered the third-most votes worldwide in Time magazine's annual poll to help choose the "100 most influential people" in the world. But though 256,828 people plumped for Modi -- about 10 times the number who picked U.S. President Barack Obama -- even more (266,739 people) gave the chief minister a thumbs-down. ..... For his part, Modi stoutly denies any wrongdoing and says he should be hanged if found guilty. In April, an investigation ordered by the Supreme Court cleared him of culpability for the riots ..... while Gujarat has grown fast, other states have grown faster still .... Most states that have grown faster than Gujarat either are much smaller or are starting from a much lower base. ..... No other Indian chief minister stands up publicly for the idea of small government, fiscal responsibility, getting the government out of business, and providing people jobs rather than handouts. ..... Narendra Modi may well be India's best chief minister. But he'd still make a terrible choice for prime minister.

Gujarat's economy: India's Guangdong

So many things work properly in Gujarat that it hardly feels like India..... There is constant electricity, gas and abundant water. The state government, he says, kept red tape to a minimum, did not ask for bribes, and does not interfere much now. .... Most of the men, the villagers say, work for small industrial firms for a wage about 50% higher than they would get in the fields. The road to Ahmedabad, Gujarat's main city, is privately operated and boasts four lanes. It passes through a countryside that is visibly industrialising. ...... It might yet play the role of industrial locomotive for the country, as Guangdong province did for China in the 1990s. There is lots of excited talk about exporters switching from China to India. Sanjay Lalbhai, the chairman of Arvind, a textiles maker and clothing retailer based in Ahmedabad, says such a move is "imminent" in his industry. ..... The state government uses the usual tricks to try to jump-start growth, including special economic zones. ..... less onerous labour laws, passable roads, reliable electricity and effective bureaucracy. ...... Gujarat could be a vision of India's future, in which manufacturing flourishes, soaking up rural labour. Its economy is expected to grow by double digits, even as India's rate slows to 7-8% this year. The state may also be a springboard for Mr Modi, who may contest the national leadership of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party

Modi to plan BJP’s 2014 battle from CM office

there is buzz in the party’s central office about how to leverage the man who has emerged the most important figure in the party gallery. There is also ambivalence about Modi on the way to become numero uno in the party. ..... The BJP enthusiasts of Modi feel that the Gujarat strongman will make mincemeat of the Gandhi scion in a duel between the two. ..... the choice of making Modi the campaign committee chairman. ..... Asked as to who would replace Modi in Gujarat and who is the second most important person in the state BJP, the reticent office-bearer said that there is no second man in the state party hierarchy, and that Modi occupies all the slots from “1 to 1001”. Modi will not leave his chief minister’s office in Gandhinagar until after victory in the Lok Sabha election. It is for this reason that there is talk of giving him a role in the poll campaign without disturbing the set-up either in Gandhinagar or in New Delhi.

88 per cent of 35,808 India Today website survey users LIKE Modi

Out of the nearly 35,808 votes polled till 9 am on Thursday, 87.5 per cent netizens liked him as the leader of the state .... The survey findings, in fact, indicate that he might look beyond the political boundaries of the state and might go ahead to achieve his prime ministerial aspirations as an NDA candidate in the 2014 general election.

Record 70.2 per cent voter turnout in Gujarat Assembly polls, says CEC
Modi, touted as PM candidate, set for Indian poll win

Election results due in the Indian state of Gujarat on Thursday are likely to seal Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi's status as a frontrunner in 2014 national polls....... Gujarat, which has a population of 60 million people ..... He campaigned during the state election on a platform of economic expansion and investment. .... "The development in Gujarat is only but a manifestation of good governance"

Gujarat elections: The rise of Narendra Modi

As a child, he runs away from home and heads to north India, living with sadhus - or holy men - for months before returning to Gujarat in the late 1960s to serve steaming cups of tea alongside one of his brothers at a stall in Ahmedabad. ..... To this day, the riots haunt Modi's government. In 2012, one of Modi's former ministers, Maya Kodnani, is sentenced to 28 years in jail alongside 30 others for the violence. ........ Gujarat today is one of India's wealthiest states and Modi's supporters credit him for bringing uninterrupted power supplies, smooth roads and a flood of investment to the state. ..... the 62-year-old is also an avid Twitter user ..... For the first time during campaigning in India, Modi uses 3-D projections of himself to appear "live" on stage at simultaneous events.

Exit poll predicts huge win for BJP's Narendra Modi in Gujarat Assembly elections

A post-poll survey today predicted a bigger victory margin for BJP in Gujarat Assembly elections as compared to the 2007 outcome, saying the ruling party could get 129 to 141 seats out of a total of 182. .... Congress is likely to get 37 to 45 seats in the Assembly with a vote share of 36 per cent against BJP's 48 per cent ..... In the 2007 Assembly polls, BJP had won in 117 seats while Congress had bagged 59.

Gujarat poll success imminent for Narendra Modi; PM candidature still under doubt

The forecasts range from around two-thirds seats to a landslide for the ruling BJP in the 182-seat Gujarat assembly, relegating the opposition Congress to even fewer seats than its tally of 59 in the 2007 polls.

Exit Polls Predict Landslide Victory for Modi

the BJP was likely to win between 118 and 140 seats, the Congress party a distant second with between 40 to 59 seats ..... Gross domestic product in the state has grown at an average of 9.59% in the five years to March 31, 2012, compared to the national average of 7.9% ...... Gujarat is home to several of India’s largest industrial projects, including the world’s largest oil refinery, run by Reliance Industries Ltd., and Tata Motors’ factory for its Nano mini-car. ...... Critics point to his links with Hindu right-wing groups and his administration’s failure to stop communal violence in his state in 2002 that killed over 1,000 people, mostly Muslim. This, they say, makes him unfit to lead a state, let alone a country as diverse as India. Mr. Modi has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. He has tried to win over more of Gujarat’s Muslims through initiatives like last year’s three-day public fast for social harmony. .... Mr. Modi himself has never publicly stated his ambition to become prime minister. ...... “My impression is that he will not be acceptable. Other political parties in the NDA are not prepared to go with a person whom not a single Muslim will vote for” ..... Current BJP allies such as the Janata Dal (United) and the Telugu Desam Party are staunchly against him as a PM candidate because of his alleged links to the 2002 communal riots. Putting Mr. Modi as the BJP’s candidate for Prime Minister, may push these parties in the hands of the rival Congress party-led alliance

Why India Is Forced to Reform Its Economy
Will Narendra Modi's PM ambitions be boosted after Gujarat win?

a victory that could launch the prime ministerial ambitions of one of the country's most popular but controversial leaders.

Modi spent all Wednesday in office, clearing pending files

He also reviewed the preparations of Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors’ Summit - 2013..... More than 5,000 delegates from 100 countries are likely to participate in the biannual event. Japan and Canada are the partner countries for the 2013 summit. The event is scheduled on January 11, 12, 13 at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar. This year, a facility for online signing of Memoranda of Understanding has been created. Innovative initiatives, small-scale industries and technology will be the focus areas of the summit.

Guj polls: Parties’ poll SMSes beeped on 1.5 crore mobiles

By the time campaigning for the first phase of assembly elections ended, BJP and Congress together had sent text or voice messages to about one lakh people in each constituency. ..... at the rate of 20 paise per message .... Gupta added that through candidates and friends, they had gathered leads of at least 80,000 mobile numbers in each constituency. ..... the messages sent by the BJP were routed through a Mumbai-based firm. Congress used a portal created by a Pune-based company to send its messages.