Union Minister of Human Resource Development
'The Great Indian Elections' have never made more headlines across the world than the mania witnessed today. At a time when every news channel considers itself the unofficial chief justice of India and every discussion robotically transforms itself into a bunch of opinionated panellists indulging in verbal warfare through frenzied debate as often observed in the Indian Parliament, India First's panel discussion with Smriti Irani and Tavleen Singh brought back the assurance that there is still room for peaceful and sensible dialogue amidst all the mayhem.
The agenda was straightforward - the India we see today and the India we hope to see post our most crucial election. Modi is the way to go, they both said. Why? While Smriti puts everyone to shame with an unparalleled awareness of the distressing state of affairs in this country articulated with an encyclopaedia of facts at her fingertips, Tavleen, in words of one syllable, wants change. They both insist there are no false promises. He's a no nonsense man with a vision to set things straight.
Women Empowerment, Sanitation, Unemployment, Economics, Standard of Living, Quality of Life, Overpopulation, Safety and Poverty were spoken of and the cure for everything seems to more or less be education and the widening of opportunity. As you would expect, Arvind Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi were the butts of every joke told that afternoon. Questions were answered, concerns addressed and this audience full of elitists, who for the first time ever come across as apprehensive about the country's political scenario, got thinking about whether or not NaMo's going to make it to '272+'.
These two very eloquent and hopeful women, besides believing so fixedly in Modi, yearn for a more promising, progressive and prosperous future of India and he is the means to get there. Well, maybe, just this once, (since we're known to give everyone a chance) we may as well press the button with the Lotus on it. What say?