A friend put up the below poster in a group I am a member of …
Another friend objected to this and said that there is no way Narendra Modi should be compared to Chhatrapati Shivaji and challenged us to find any similarity between the two.
As such, I am completely opposed to comparing any person with another. I am also completely opposed to comparing Shivaji Maharaj to Prime minister Narendra Modi.
But the challenge made me a little curious as to why any supporter would want to compare Modi to Shivaji Maharaj only and not to any other personality from history. So here goes my understanding … bear with me and do not lose your cool if you don’t agree with me.
SHIV BHAKT: There can be no doubt that both Shivaji Maharaj and Narendra Modi are Shiv Bhakts. Har Har Mahadev!
MATRU BHAKTI: Can anyone define Shivaji without Jijamata’s role in the life of Shivaji Maharaj? She was the one who taught him about Sanatan Dharma, courage, justice and the need to oust the Mughals from our lands. She encouraged him to see the erosion of culture and work towards saving our culture and heritage.
Can any picture of Narendra Modi be complete without the picture of him sitting with his Mother and taking her blessings? Her problems in her younger days inspired Modi to work for the poor woman in the villages – whether it was the Ujwala yojana, the Swachh Bharat, the building of latrines or houses – the woman of the house was the focal point in these schemes.
SABKA SAATH, SABKA VIKAS: Shivaji Maharaj is well known for his fairness and justice to people of all castes, communities and religion. He never differentiated between his subjects.
Narendra Modi too has always stressed on Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas from the time he has become the PM. All public utility schemes are open to all irrespective of caste or religion.
RECAPTURING LOST TERRITORY: It is a well-known fact that Shivaji Maharaj captured many forts from the Mughals (Aurangzeb) and built many more. During his rule, Shivaji had 370 forts under his rule.
Modi ji has captured many seats and States from Congress rule and has added more to his kitty. It wouldn’t surprise me, looking at the crowds during his road shows, if NDA won 370 seats in this election. Of course I’m no psephologist!
GUERILLA TACTICS: Shivaji Maharaj was the best at guerilla tactics and he used it to the fullest to win battles and exasperate the enemies.
One just has to see the reaction of the biased Media & Journalists and the Congress to know how Modi ji has used guerilla tactics to exasperate them. Main Bhi Chowkidar, interview with Akshay Kumar (when the biopic release is stalled), fielding Sadhvi Pragya against Digvijay Singh, making Yogi Adityanath as the UP CM, all these are some of the examples when the biased media and Congress did not know what hit them! PM Modi is an expert in ‘out of the box’ thinking.
ESCAPE FROM IMPRISONMENT: One of the most enthralling episodes of Shivaji Maharaj’s life is the time when he escaped from Aurangzeb’s jail, along with his son. Despite the best of security, both of them managed to flummox the enemy and reach Maharashtra safely. The cunning tactics of the enemy could not hold him back. He became stronger.
Despite the best efforts of the biased Media in India, die-hard haters like John Dayal and Arundati Roy, the ‘Maut ke Saudagar’ commentators, and more, Narendra Modi stood straight like a rock, fought his case fairly and was never imprisoned for the riots in Gujarat. In fact, he emerged stronger and went on to become the PM of our country.
INSPIRATION: There cannot be any doubt that both Shivaji Maharaj and Narendra Modi are inspirations to millions of people, old and young.
Every age has its own heroes. Comparing one hero of a particular time with a hero of another time is not ideal and one must shun from doing this. Each one is special in their own way. To me, both are heroes worth emulating because of their unparalleled desh bhakti.
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