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    COVER STORY                                                              JUNE 19, 2026     |  The Indian Eye                    5

                Union  Minister Piyush Goyal                                                                          Kharge also used the occasion to
            similarly connected Modi’s tenure                                                                     broaden his criticism of the govern-
            with India’s growing international                                                                    ment. He argued that the past twelve
            stature. According to Goyal, India is                                                                 years had been marked by “sloganeer-
            reaching “new heights” globally while                                                                 ing” and “manufactured narratives.”
            simultaneously strengthening its cul-                                                                 According to him, the government
            tural heritage. He described Modi as                                                                  had failed to fulfill promises related
            a leader who enjoys exceptional levels                                                                to  employment,  inflation,  farmers’
            of trust both domestically and inter-                                                                 welfare and economic growth.
            nationally.                                                                                               These criticisms represent some
                The government’s emphasis on                                                                      of the central themes of the oppo-
            international recognition was rein-                                                                   sition’s political strategy. While the
            forced by the stream of congratula-                                                                   BJP  focuses  on  governance,  infra-
            tory messages Modi received from                                                                      structure, welfare delivery and India’s
            foreign leaders and former heads of                                                                   international standing, opposition
            government.  Modi  publicly thanked                                                                   parties frequently point to economic
            Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristers-                                                                  challenges  and  unmet  expectations.
            son, former British Prime Minister                                                                    The anniversary therefore became
            Rishi Sunak, former Canadian Prime                                                                    another arena in which competing
            Minister Stephen Harper, Israeli                                                                      narratives about India’s recent trajec-
            Prime Minister Benjamin Netanya-    Prime Minister Narendra Modi is being felicitated by BJP National President Nitin Nabin as   tory were contested.
            hu, South Korean President Lee Jae-  he chairs a high-level NDA Conclave at the Bharat Mandapam, in New Delhi on Wednesday.   The political polarization sur-
            myung and Danish Prime Minister                                                                       rounding the milestone was evident in
            Mette Frederiksen, among others.                     (Narendra Modi Photo Gallery/ANI Photo)          the reaction from BJP leaders. West
                The  significance  of  these  ex-                                                                 Bengal minister Dilip Ghosh dismissed
            changes extends beyond protocol.   1947 until the first general election in   Congress president Mallikarjun   Congress criticism and argued that or-
            The Modi government has consis-   1951-52 and then continued in office   Kharge took a more direct approach.   dinary citizens were satisfied with Mo-
            tently highlighted India’s expanding   until 1964.                  He argued that Nehru remained In-  di’s leadership. According to Ghosh,
            diplomatic profile and strategic part-  According to Chidambaram, ex-  dia’s  longest-serving  Prime  Minis-  the  public  recognizes  that “change
            nerships as evidence of its success.   cluding the years between indepen-  ter and also held the record for the   has come in the country” and remains
            By publicizing messages from foreign   dence and the first election creates a   longest continuous tenure. Kharge   supportive of the Prime Minister.
            leaders, the government sought to re-  misleading comparison. He argued   accused the BJP of inventing “a new   His comments reflected a key re-
            inforce the image of India as a more   that there was no need to diminish   and ridiculous category” to establish   ality of Indian politics: Modi remains
            influential global actor under Modi’s   Nehru’s legacy while recognizing Mo-  Modi’s claim as the longest contin-  the  central  figure  around  whom  na-
            leadership.                       di’s achievement. His intervention   uously serving Prime Minister after   tional political debate revolves. Sup-
                In his responses, Modi repeat-  reflected the Congress Party’s broad-  general elections.         porters regard him as the architect of
            edly stressed India’s commitment to   er effort to defend the historical role   The dispute may appear techni-  a transformed India, while opponents
            strengthening bilateral ties and ad-  of India’s first Prime Minister against   cal, but it carries substantial political   argue that the government’s narrative
            vancing strategic partnerships. He   what it sees as attempts by the BJP to   significance.  In  democratic  politics,   often overshadows unresolved policy
            also stated that he remained com-  rewrite political history.       historical milestones often become   challenges.
            mitted to working with “even greater   Chidambaram’s comments also   symbols of legitimacy and leader-    The celebration of 4,399 days in
            dedication” to realize the vision of a   highlighted a deeper political struggle   ship. By emphasizing Modi’s record,   office  therefore  goes  beyond  a  nu-
            “Viksit Bharat” or developed India.   over historical memory. The BJP has   the BJP seeks to present him as the   merical record. It highlights the re-
            This phrase has become one of the   often sought to challenge the domi-  defining political figure of contempo-  markable durability of Modi’s polit-
            defining  goals  of  the  government’s   nance of Congress-era narratives in   rary India. By contesting the interpre-  ical  appeal,  the  BJP’s  confidence  in
            long-term agenda.                 Indian politics, while Congress lead-  tation, Congress attempts to protect   presenting him as the face of India’s
                The celebration of Modi’s record   ers have accused the ruling party of   the historical standing of Nehru and   future, and the continuing contest
            tenure  also  reflects  a  broader  shift   selectively interpreting history to en-  challenge what it sees as partisan his-  over how India’s recent political his-
            in Indian politics. For much of the   hance its own legitimacy.     torical revisionism.              tory should be understood.
            post-independence period, political                                                                       For the NDA, the milestone is
            longevity was associated with leaders                                                                 proof of stable leadership, develop-
            such  as  Jawaharlal  Nehru  and  Indi-                                                               mental governance and growing in-
            ra  Gandhi. Modi’s  crossing of the                                                                   ternational  influence.  For  Congress
            4,399-day threshold therefore carries                                                                 and other critics, it is an opportunity
            symbolic weight because it places him                                                                 to remind the public of Nehru’s his-
            among the most enduring figures in                                                                    torical role and to question whether
            independent India’s political history.                                                                the government’s claims match the
                However, the occasion has also                                                                    realities of employment, inflation and
            revived a debate over how such re-                                                                    economic performance.
            cords should be interpreted.                                                                              As Modi enters the next phase of
                Congress leader P. Chidambaram                                                                    his tenure, the debate over his legacy
            acknowledged that Modi’s comple-                                                                      is likely to intensify. The record itself
            tion  of  4,399  days  in  office  was  “an                                                           is undisputed in the specific category
            achievement worthy of praise.” Yet                                                                    cited by the government. What re-
            he rejected the argument that Modi                                                                    mains contested is the larger question
            had surpassed Nehru in an absolute   Prime Minister Narendra Modi with other leaders during a high-level NDA Conclave in New   of how history will ultimately judge
            sense. Chidambaram pointed out that          Delhi on Wednesday (Narendra Modi Photo Gallery/ANI Photo)  the twelve years that brought him to
            Nehru served as Prime Minister from                                                                   this milestone.

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