Champions Of Free Markets: Narendra Modi And Margaret Thatcher....!!

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          As the 2014 election turns into a national referendum on the popular but polarising politician, many question to come up again and again, not merely in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, but equally in London, Brussels and Washington. Some day before I was reading about comparisons between Narendra Modi and former Britain’s Iron Lady and PM Margaret Thatcher on Economic Reformer.

           Margaret Thatcher was Britain’s first female prime minister and served three consecutive terms in office. She was one of the dominant political figures of 20th century. In India, the death of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has sparked comparisons  between the “Iron Lady” and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
She was a British nationalist and champion of free-market capitalism. As a politician she left a divisive legacy in her native U.K. and revamped her country’s declining economy in a process that also triggered social unrest.
 
          Narendra Modi, chief minister of India’s western Gujarat state, has presided over an economic boom in his region. Foreign investors say he has cut down on red tape and improved infrastructure in a country where red-tape-ism torpedoes many business deals and has held back economic growth.

          He hit many notes that would have been familiar to Margaret Thatcher. In many speeches to business executives in New Delhi, Ahmadabad and Kolkata. Which are widely seen as part of Narendra Modi’s attempts to kick-start a run for prime minister in 2014? As a member of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, talked about how governments should play only a small role in an economy, a dig at the national ruling Congress party’s massive social welfare programs. He regularly cited examples of entrepreneurial achievement in Gujarat as evidence of the power of individual choice as an economic driver. Margaret Thatcher would’ve liked this, too.

           Champions of free markets are hoping  Narendra Modi can emulate Margaret Thatcher, who took over the U.K. government in 1979 amid a broken economy and labor strife. Some day ago a Indian-based analyst at KPMG LLP, Navin Agrawal said “I think he’s our Iron Man.” Here these comparisons are valid and I think there is a lot in common between them. In his inclination for small government and a high level of governance, in that respect he’s close to Thatcher. Narendra Modi on his Twitter account tweeted this: “Inspirational leader of immense stature & fortitude, Baroness Margaret Thatcher was an epoch maker. A sad loss for UK and the world.”

          The parallels between Narendra Modi and Margaret Thatcher didn’t go unnoticed by others on social media.  After Gujarat election we were listening in social media that in the 1980’s there were President Reagan and PM Margaret Thatcher, who forever changed the world we live in. Now, it is Honorable Narendra Modi’s turn to make a similar impact. A pro-Modi group based in the U.S. Indian Americans for Freedom said in a note congratulating him for his re-election in Gujarat state elections in December.
But here a question is arises that is a comparison between Narendra Modi and Margaret Thatcher appropriate? Regardless of his commitment to free-market reforms, Narendra Modi is likely to find a job on a national scale a lot more trying than managing Gujarat, which is home to some of India’s most entrepreneurial people.

          The government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh unveiled a series of overhauls in September, including allowing foreign companies to invest in Indian supermarkets for the first time. Many states opposed the move, saying it would kill local businesses and have refused to implement the law. Narendra Modi’s response at the time hardly showed him to be a free marketer of the Chicago school of economics. While he didn’t reject the proposal completely, he said India needs to modernize its smaller industries before allowing in the Wal-Marts of this world. His party, meanwhile, opposed the reforms.

           But there’s another way Narendra Modi and Margaret Thatcher could be compared. Both figures polarized opinion in their countries. She sidelined trade unions through sweeping privatizations. Hundreds of people died in the military campaign she spearheaded to retake the Falkland Islands from Argentina. In the U.K., some went as far as cheering her death. And here Narendra Modi faces criticism for his ties to right-wing Hindu groups, even from some BJP allies. Critics also say he didn’t do enough to stop anti-Muslim violence during communal violence in Gujarat in 2002. He has denied any wrongdoing.
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