Man of many moods

New Delhi: It was a day of drama, excitement, emotions, tears, and clap-trap. Every step that Narendra Modi took, every word that he spoke, and every gesture that he made had resonance that reverberated in the Central Hall of Parliament.  

He was the first prime minister-designate to touch his forehead on the green-carpeted first step. In a short while, he was elected leader of the BJP Parliamentary Board.

Modi had a message for everyone. While political corridors were abuzz with ministerial aspirants and their preferred portfolios, Modi’s point-blank advice was: “We are not here to hanker after posts. The 125 crore who have sent us here have expectations that we must pledge to fulfil. Therefore, posts are not a big thing. We have to prepare to surrender ourselves.”

Like a consummate artiste, he was in perfect command of himself, till he was overcome with emotion and wept. He touched everyone with his emotions and swayed the mood of the audience. Veterans L K Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Ravi Shankar Prasad and many others – almost all, to be precise – were in tears. At the start, Modi was sentimental while talking about Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who is unwell. “Had Vajpayeeji been well, his presence would have been ‘sone par suhaga’ (icing on the cake).”

Modi recalled that in early 2013, when BJP’s national council met in Delhi shortly after he won the Gujarat election, he had said: “Ham chale ya naa chale, desh chal pada (whether we, the BJP, move or not, the country has moved on).”

Throughout the speech, Modi underlined the power of the pause during speech. Emotions aside, he not only displayed his command over the Hindi language but also spoke like a man in total command of everything he surveys.