(Ravi Shankar Prasad is the BJP's Deputy Leader in the Rajya Sabha and a former Union Minister.)
Travelling across the country for the last one-and-a-half years, one was getting repeated hints about the expectations of the people from Narendra Modi. The name and image of the man had travelled far and wide. In the Nagaland assembly elections held last year, while campaigning , I also heard people taking his name with fond hope.
This was an election not of emotion, but of hope. It represents a tectonic shift in the polity of India. After 1984, it's the first time a party has attained a majority on its own. Once the people realized they wanted Mr Modi to lead India as the head of the BJP, they consciously decided to give a clear and comfortable majority to our party. It is a measure of the maturity of the Indian population that they concluded that the country needed a stable government with a comfortable majority for a clear and decisive governance.
Maybe the era of coalitions is coming to an end, even though the BJP fully respects the NDA and its partners. We will give them due respect and responsibility.
There is a second large and profound message of this election. The politics of dynasty, entitlement and inheritance has been rebuffed by the people, and the politics of achievement based upon hard work, initiative and good governance has been rewarded. People have given a message that pedigree is no longer important. It is entirely for the Congress to read the right message of this election, which has delivered the worst performance ever to the Congress. The indications are that they may not even qualify to become the main opposition party in the Lok Sabha.
The state of Indian economy is in terrible shape and the new government will take proper initiatives to restore the people's confidence in the very story of India by providing robust economic and fiscal policies, a very stable and progressive tax regime, decision-making which is non-discriminatory, fair and prompt and where there is no rent-seeking.
With this idea, the economy would be back on track, and we will do our best to respond to the aspirations of young India, which has given us such a tremendous support.
As Mr Modi has himself said, everyone, regardless of his or her caste, community or religion, will be accorded due respect. He has been the chief minister of a state, and therefore he knows and understands the pain and agony of the other chief ministers. The federal principle will be respected, and the states will be made partners in India's growth story.
The government led by Mr Modi will exhibit zero tolerance towards corruption and terrorism. There will be transparency in decision-making.
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