The seldom or ever discussed drivers of the Modi-era, a brief thread:

NaMo becoming the PM is more than the culmination of a particular set of ideas. It is a consequence of multiple factors, the most important but rarely talked about being the transitional churn from 1990-2010.

I categorise India's post Independence political history in three phases broadly, PM Nehru-PM Rajiv; PM VP Singh-PM Manmohan; PM Modi and onward. This categorisation is not based merely on the role of coalitions but also on the larger social dynamics that led to those coalitions.

Focusing on the second phase since there is extensive documentation from all possible standpoints of the first phase. Now the second phase despite witnessing its fair share of waxing and waning of political fortunes was primarily led by the actions of two iconic personalities –

Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao and Shri Lal Krishna Advani. If the twenty four year period from 1990-2014 were to be seen as Mahabharata, these two men should be seen as Bhishma Pitamah and Guru Dronacharya respectively for their overarching influence.

The policies of PM Rao and actions of Mr Advani coupled with their adherence to their respective schools of thought form the bedrock of India's socio-political and economic discourse in the 21st century. This discourse in turn is now the playing field for all political parties.

Hence in hindsight, it is safe to assume that the PVNR-Advani era and not the first phase (which was a natural product of independence) is the most important (despite all the turbulence) period in Indian polity. While the transition could have been smooth but we are incredibly

fortunate to have such rich, diverse and resourceful contemporary history. This is where Modi stole a march on his competitors. He built his campaign by compounding on Mr Advani's actions and laying claim to PM Rao's policies. How successful he has been in carrying forth these

two vastly distinct ideas is a matter of separate debate altogether, the main theme of discussion here is him being able to coalesce the best of both worlds to his advantage. INC's departure from the headstrong policy approach of Prime Minister Rao and BJP's failure to continue

the initial article of faith as propounded by Shri Advani and the Sangh, had left a vacuum to be filled on both these fronts. Prime Minister Modi was quick in recognising the people's yearn for a change around both these ideas. That he was able to propose and sell a solution is

itself worth a thorough case study. Now he is using these predominant social and economic leitmotifs to structure his own set of standards. The magnitude of his undertakings in this regard will determine the nature of our socio-economic and political scene going forward

This thread is by not by a long chalk comprehensive, critique welcome