Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi‘s 64th birthday on Tuesday coinciding with Vishwakarma Jayanti turned out to be a major political event, with the BJP‘s prime ministerial candidate making an outreach to workers in both the organized and unorganized sectors who worship Vishwakarma, the Hindu deity of machines and tools.
Modi was busy with functions throughout the day, from seeking his mother Hiraben’s blessings at her Gandhinagar home in the morning where she gifted him a copy of the Bhagvad Gita, to meeting his political rival Keshubhai Patel, president of Gujarat Parivartan Party.
Modi, who received greetings from many including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and BJP veteran L K Advani whom he just overpowered in the leadership tussle, reached out to workers by greeting them on Viswakarma Jayanti. He used the motto of “Shrameva Jayate (labour alone prevails) to emphasize the dignity of labour.
Being the only Hindu festival whose date is fixed by the Roman calendar and which, therefore, does not change, the link between Vishwakarma Jayanti and Modi’s birthday was not a coincidence. However, his comments on Tuesday stood out because they came against the backdrop of feeling of some in Sangh Parivar that the party can hope to gain electorally by cashing in on Modi’s credential as the strongest OBC contender ever for the country’s top job.
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