Narendra Modi’s 15th August Speech : Analysis
August 16, 2014
http://www.elections.in/blog/narendra-modis-15th-august-speech-analysis/
From a rehearsal of Independence Day speech from Shri Ramji Ravji Lalan College, Bhuj last year as a Prime Minister aspirant, to finally delivering his maiden I-Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort, PM Narendra Modi has shown that he has a penchant for occasion!
On August 15 last year, as the prime ministerial aspirant Modi had severely criticised the then PM Manmohan Singh’s ‘disappointing’ address to the nation. It was imperative, therefore, that now as PM, he had to be different than his predecessor not just in content but also in style and appearance. As for content, his speech was obviously more grounded in his RSS moorings and the concept of Hindutva as evident from his invocation of the saints and seers of ancient India, Swami Vivekanand and Maharshi Arvind And in terms of appearance, he wore a Hindu turban that was strikingly different from what Singh – a Sikh – wears. Yet if looks were all that mattered then most people would never get laid.Modi’s Independence Day : Breaking many Conventions
Modi’s Independence Day speech was not just a statement of style or fashion. It was apparently meant to break the monotony of convention – to give an unambiguous message of change to the countrymen from the nation’s biggest stage. Of course there couldn’t have been a bigger occasion for a new Prime Minister – a leader aspiring for acceptance by the Muslims – to showcase his grip on governance before the nation (His call for 10-year moratorium on communal and caste violence is significant in this regard).
It is in this light, therefore, that his speech needs to be analysed. That he succeeded in portraying a positive image of himself among the masses was evidently clear and reflected in the words of the Congress leader Abhishek Manu Sanghvi, who remarked: “PM’s words inclusive, harmonious, carrying all together, non-vendetta.”
Connecting with People through Extempore Speech
It would be very naïve to say that an I-Day speech is just an image building exercise. It is about the vision of a Prime Minister for the entire nation. Yet, can we term it a sheer coincidence that Modi chose to speak extempore like he had done in his innumerable election rallies? That there were no umbrellas to protect the PM from rains and no bullet-proof glass either to protect him from bullets!
The August 15 speech was indeed different. It marked the departure of an almost 30-year-old convention of successive prime ministers reading out their speeches on their indisputably the most important and awaited public address of the year. The last prime minister to have made such extempore speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort was late Indira Gandhi!
Remember when her son and successor late Rajiv Gandhi tried to avoid his notes how he goofed up and wished the people ‘Gantantra Diwas’ (Republic Day) instead of ‘Swatantra Diwas’ (Independence Day)?
Obviously Modi’s extemporary address, on a more individual level, was meant to be noticed and it was indeed noticed as evident from the post-speech television discussions, and newspaper coverage. After all, didn’t it amply demonstrate that he is in complete command – a ‘refreshing’ change from the UPA days when there were multiple centres of power?
Yet, it also charted out the whole immediate plan of action of the new government. He made a strong case for manufacturing, development and hygiene. He called upon the youth to create a digital India, and invited the world to make India an industrial hub with sustainable development; announced a Swachh Bharat (Clean India) campaign to be launched on October 2 and to be accomplished by 2019, on the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, and construction of toilets in all schools, including separate toilets for girls, within one year.
Besides, Modi rooted for woman empowerment; urged naxals to shun violence and return to the mainstream and also unveiled two new schemes:
- The Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojna where he appealed to MPs to adopt villages and use their respective local area development fund (MPLAD) to target making them model villages by 2016;
- The PM Jandhan Yojna to link the poor with bank accounts and debit cards and provide every poor person an insurance of Rs 1 lakh.
Junking Planning Commission, Omitting Nehru
Yet his most important announcement was of disbanding the Planning Commission – a brainchild of Jawaharlal Nehru. As a debate rages on this move now, it is remarkable that Modi refrained from naming Nehru anywhere in his speech. He did name (Mahatma) Gandhi, Sardar (Patel) and (Lal Bahadur) Shastri for their contribution to the development of India. But the Nehru clan had no mention in his speech.
So, can we say that Modi’s first I-day speech is an astute political statement of a prime minister who unlike his predecessors sought and got the mandate for ‘development’? It obviously made him stand out from his predecessors and projected him as a confident leader of his government. Such a projection is not a mean achievement if we look at the way he carved a niche for himself first in his own party, and then among his electorates. But more important is the message that he has subtly tried to convey to the masses – that he is not a pushover, but a man on a mission. He seems to be aware of the consequences of showing big dreams to the electorates. After all, isn’t it true that time and again, within a short span of three months, he is being evaluated everyday on his ‘acchey din’ (better days) slogan. Obviously, Modi needs to prove himself more than any of his predecessors because his mandate is for performance. His challenges are manifold.
Little surprise, therefore, that Modi went on to break many conventions – old or new in the course of his I-Day speech to stamp his arrival on the scene.
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