Clean government led by a charismatic and strong PM has redressed trust deficit between citizens and elites | The Indian Express

Clean government led by a charismatic and strong PM has redressed trust deficit between citizens and elites | The Indian Express

Written by Makarand R. Paranjape |Updated: July 4, 2019 6:41:49 am

The writer is director, Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla. Views are personal.

Clean government led by a charismatic and strong PM has redressed trust deficit between citizens and elites

Modi’s elevation to the post of India’s prime minister in 2014 is a watershed moment for India. Only he has understood the idea of Bharat Shakti and is therefore the best instrument to confirm and fulfill Aurobindo’s augury.

The new nationalism that Modi 2.0 represents is Bharat Shakti in its manifold dimensions. (Illustration by Suvajit Dey)

Last year, I co-curated the Pondicherry literature festival (PLF). Scheduled for August 17-19, after Sri Aurobindo’s birthday on August 15, this was the first event of this scale and magnitude in the erstwhile French enclave and still picturesque Union Territory. Alliance Française de Puducherry, whose then president was my co-curator, had offered us venues as well as support. The Lt Governor of Puducherry, Kiran Bedi, had herself blessed the event and agreed to host the inaugural at Raj Niwas, a beautiful colonial mansion.