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2012

Praful Patel praises Modi for winning Gujarat polls

Mumbai, Dec 28, 2012:

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Praful Patel Friday praised Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for the BJP's victory in the state assembly elections.

"Modi led his party to victory in the assembly elections due to his work and the confidence that people reposed in him. He was successful in gaining the trust of people," Patel, union minister for heavy industries and public enterprises, said here.

Patel was in Mumbai to attend the inauguration of the newly renovated Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) office. The ceremony was also attended by several NCP ministers, including Sharad Pawar, Ajit Pawar, R.R. Patil and Tariq Anwar.

Seeking a review of the NCP's defeat in Gujarat, Patel said the Congress had fielded candidates from all the seats which the NCP contested. "We had a tie-up with the Congress in Gujarat so that we could avoid division of secular votes. However, that did not happen," he said.

Patel also commended NCP president Sharad Pawar, saying that he is "one of the few leaders who enjoys the respect of people. From this (newly inaugurated) office, let us make efforts to put Pawar at a bigger place," Patel said.....IANS/NRIpress.com

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Modi is Gujarat CM again -- for fourth term

Ahmedabad, Dec 26, 2012:

Cheered by hundreds of thousands, Narendra Modi Wednesday took oath as Gujarat's chief minister for the fourth time, after leading the BJP to a sweeping win in assembly elections.

Governor Kamla Beniwal administered the oath of office and secrecy to the 62-year-old Bharatiya Janata Party leader, who has ruled Gujarat since 2001, at the Sardar Patel Stadium here.

An estimated 2.5 lakh people packing the ground roared in joy as a visibly confident Modi took the oath in Gujarati.

Seven cabinet ministers and nine ministers of state also took oath.

After the brief ceremony, the chief minister went around the stadium in an open vehicle, waving to the cheering crowds and flashing a 'V' sign.

Among those present on the occasion were BJP leaders Nitin Gadkari and Sushma Swaraj, Chief Ministers J. Jayalalithaa of Tamil Nadu and Parkash Singh Badal of Punjab, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, MNS leader Raj Thackeray and Indian National Lok Dal chief Om Prakash Chautala.

In the December elections, the BJP won 115 of the 182 seats. This was two short of its 2007 tally of 117. The Congress was bruised, bagging 61 seats.

Modi is scheduled to attend the National Development Council (NDC) meeting in New Delhi Thursday.

Before leaving for the venue, Modi tweeted: "Leaving for swearing in ceremony. Glad to see love of so many people and the presence of distinguished leaders."

A still earlier tweet of Wednesday by Modi said: "To make a great future India, the whole secret lies in organization... coordination of wills."

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Modi to be sworn in as Gujarat chief minister Wednesday

New Delhi, Dec 25, 2012

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who returned to power in assembly elections for a third time, will be sworn in Wednesday, party sources said Tuesday.

This will be the fourth swearing-in for the BJP leader, who has ruled the state since 2001.

Modi will attend the National Development Council meeting in Delhi the next day.

In Gujarat, the BJP bagged 115 seats, two short of its 117 tally of 2007, of the total 182 seats. The Congress was bruised with 61 seats.

Party sources said the BJP leadership, including veteran L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, were expected to attend Modi's swearing-in ceremony........IANS/NRIpress.com

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Top BJP leaders, Jayalalithaa to attend Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony

New Delhi, Dec 25, 2012

Top BJP leaders and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa will attend the swearing-in ceremony in which Narendra Modi will take oath as Gujarat Chief Minister on Wednesday.

Heavy security arrangements have been made at the Sardar Patel Stadium where Modi will be sworn in as Chief Minister at a grand function at around 11 am.

"Top BJP leaders, including L K Advani, Nitin Gadkari, Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, Rajnath Singh and Venkaiah Naidu will be present for the swearing-in ceremony of Chief Minister Narendra Modi," Gujarat BJP spokesperson I K Jadeja said on Monday.

"Chief Ministers of other BJP-ruled states and also of some non-BJP ruled states will be present," he added.

Modi had taken oath as Chief Minister for the first time in 2001 and then in 2002 and 2007.

Jayalalithaa is among the non-BJP Chief Ministers who will attend the ceremony on Tuesday. Modi, who maintains a good rapport with the AIADMK chief, attended her swearing-in ceremony after her party swept back to power in Assembly election in Tamil Nadu last year........IANS/ NRIpress.com

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Narendra Modi's victory in Gujarat polls elates India Inc

New Delhi/Ahmedabad, Friday, December 21, 2012

Industry leaders hailed the sweeping victory of Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Gujarat assembly elections saying it will further boost the flow of investments into the state.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) president Adi Godrej said Modi's being in office again would further boost investors' confidence in the state and provide political stability.

"The stability in the state would enhance confidence of the industry and herald new investments. CII has been working closely with the state government and looks forward to continuing its engagement with it for Gujarat's progress," Godrej said on Thursday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has won 116 seats, virtually equalling the 117 seats won in the 2007 assembly elections to the 182-member Gujarat assembly.

"Modi's hat trick victory is a resounding endorsement of his leadership and his success in economic development in Gujarat," said Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairman and managing director of Biocon Limited.

"Yes, Modi has delivered on a basic inclusive development agenda that goes beyond Roti Kapada Makan - education and healthcare," Shaw said on the micro-blogging site twitter.

Narendra Modi has emerged as a poster boy of India Inc due to his industry-friendly policies and no nonsense attitude while doing business. Several corporate giants including the Tata Group, Reliance and Maruti Suzuki have invested heavily in Gujarat during his rule, which spans over a decade.

Referring to the BJP's opposition to allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail, Shaw said: "Modi has to toe the party line but I'm sure he personally favours FDI in retail."

"Gujarat has voted for development," said Rajkumar Dhoot, president, Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham).

Dhoot said heavy investments are flowing into Gujarat because Modi has adopted industry-friendly policies and improved basic infrastructure and governance.

"Improving the basic infrastructure to facilitate the industries for starting new ventures by utilising the vast mineral reserves of Gujarat and promoting public-private partnership (PPP) in agriculture, industry and services sectors to create new jobs and further promote economic activity through proper co-ordination between government, private sector and the civil society must be the next agenda of the state government," Assocham president said........IANS/ NRIpress.com
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Modi's Gujarat is vibrant only for his five pet industrialists: Gujarat Congress

AHMEDABAD, Nov 03, 2012

: As the election campaign in Gujarat heats up, the state Congress, which has been out of power since 1995 when it lost to the BJP, is confident of ousting the three-term Narendra Modi government in the December polls.

"The people of Gujarat are fed up with the Modi government. Modi claims Gujarat is vibrant and he has well-oiled machinery to propagate his lies. But the people of Gujarat have realised and exposed his fake claims. The Gujarat voter will give a befitting reply in December. Modi will be defeated," said a confident Leader of Opposition Shaktisinh Gohil of the Gujarat Congress.

But how will the Congress counter the onslaught of Modi, with his enigmatic personality and shrill rhetoric, that too in a state which has remained polarised since 2002?

"We are exposing Modi's lies. 'Vibrant Gujarat' is a myth. Modi's Gujarat is vibrant only for his five pet industrialists, not for the 'aam aadmi'. Over 16 farmers have committed suicide due to debt or poverty. Crimes against women have increased. Over 16,000 children have gone missing during the Modi regime. Modi moves around with 300-plus commandos, but there is no safety net for the people. Farmers and small and medium entrepreneurs are all tired and feel betrayed.

"We are voicing the concern of the aam aadmi and thereby exposing Modi. His benefits have been for Tata and Essar only. He has doled out benefits. There is nothing for the aam aadmi in Gujarat," Gohil told IANS in an interview.

He also debunked the perception that Modi had brought development to Gujarat. "Listen, only those who have NOT been to Gujarat before 2001 are touting it as developed. Gujarat has always been developed and progressive."

What about the fact that the Congress in Gujarat is in disorder? That it has not even projected a chief ministerial candidate till now?

"There is no leadership crisis in the Gujarat Congress. Unlike the BJP, we don't have an authoritarian dictator imposing his whims and fancies on us. We are a democratic party and for us, the organisation matters more than any individual. We don't have a system of declaring chief ministerial candidates," Gohil said.

What will the Congress' poll strategy be? How will it reach out to the state's five distinct regions, its communities and groups like farmers?

"We are focussing on the whole of Gujarat and not any one particular region. Because the entire state needs to be freed from the clutches of Modi," Gohil said.

"As far as communities are concerned, the aam aadmi will vote for the Congress irrespective of his or her caste and class. And Muslims in Gujarat are not carried away by Modi's 'Sadbhavana' (goodwill) farce."

"Farmers will get uninterrupted power supply. Right now, that is not the case. Also competitive prices for their products. Right now, farmers are the most hassled section in the Modi regime. Their land is being snatched away by mafias. All this will be checked through a special farmer's policy," Gohil said.

Elections to the 182-member Gujarat assembly will be held on December 13 and 17 and votes will be counted Dec 20.

The BJP has 117 seats in the outgoing assembly and the Congress 59. The Nationalist Congress Party has three seats and the Janata Dal-United one, while there are two independents.

While the BJP first came to power in March 1995, Modi became chief minister only in October 2001. The party was returned to power in the 2002 and 2007 elections. Between 1995 and now, the state was briefly under President's Rule in September-October 1996 and was then ruled by the Rashtriya Janata Party, which had broken away from the BJP, from October 1996 to March 1998, when the BJP returned to power........IANS/....NRIpress.com