POWER WITHOUT PAUSE

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi turns 75, his career stands as a testament to political endurance, centralised authority and a major influence on the Indian growth story

- BY PRATUL SHARMA

On October 7, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will complete 24 unbroken years in public office.

His elevation as Gujarat’s chief minister in 2001, after serving as a BJP general secretary, marked the start of a political career that has since extended to more than 11 years at the helm of the Union government. The milestone underscores his durability in executive office.

Only two leaders before him have crossed a similar threshold. Pawan Kumar Chamling, Sikkim’s longest-serving chief minister, held office for 24 years and 165 days, while Naveen Patnaik served as chief minister of Odisha for 24 years and 99 days. Modi is just months short of surpassing both.

Earlier in July, he became the second longest-serving prime minister in consecutive terms, overtaking Indira Gandhi's unbroken tenure of 4,077 days between 1966 and 1977. The longest stretch remains that of India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, though Modi has equalled Nehru in leading his party to three successive general election victories.

In public service, Modi has been active for the last 50 years. As a 25-year-old, he coordinated meetings and distributed literature against the Emergency of 1975-77. He became general secretary of the newly formed Gujarat Lok Sangharsh Samiti, an RSS-inspired body.

This was his first major political exposure and assignment, though he had already been active socially as an RSS pracharak.

In the past 11 years in Delhi, Modi has established political dominance, reshaping the BJP into a strong ideological force at the hustings and carving out new national priorities. Free from the political hesitations enforced by coalition governments, he has focused on economic growth, social welfare and infrastructure expansion.