Chaiwallah as Prime Minister

After ten years of exile from central government BJP hopes India will vote for Modi this time

Narendra Modi addressing BJP national executive council meet

BJP and its Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi is pushing Chaiwallah (tea seller) slogan to engross not only opponents but also the lowest section of society. 

Chaiwallah symbolizes poor man, hawkers and small shop owners of society who have felt their presence from small market of remotest villages to big markets of cities and metropolitan. With industrialists and big business houses in their side Modi and BJP need support of lower segment of society. Inflation, corruption and scams have already tilted middle class towards saffron party. Recent drubbing of Congress and other opposition parties in Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgargh and Rajasthan have shown this trend loudly and clearly.

By calling himself Chaiwallah Modi tries to connect himself with millions of street vendors who some how run their families and have aspirations and dreams for better life not only for him self but also for his immediate and extended families. Chaiwallah de facto connotes common man who lives most of his life in perusing dreams and fulfilling small needs of his offspring and wife. It seems Modi and BJP have established a one to one relationship with members of small business class segment regardless of their caste, creeds and religion. Remember it was the common men who had favoured Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi which has disturbed the power equations of BJP in Delhi despite being winner in three states. That is why Modi never reacted with strong riposte for Chaiwallah jibe. If any retort for chaiwallah remark had come then it was from other senior leaders of BJP not from Modi himself. Gujarat Chief Minister always used this as eminence to which other leaders of opposition boasted as stigma rather than as quality.

Mani Shankar Aiyar at AICC Meet

BJP in fact has planned to ignite more aggressively this feeling and image of Chaiwallah to next level. Many meetings and Nukkad Nataks on chaiwallah’s theme have been planned across the India in which party leaders and its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi will participate to spread image and feeling associated with tea seller. Congress also understands the analogy between chaiwallah and lower middle class. Because of this reason spokesperson of party disassociated the Congress with remarks of Mani Shankar Aiyar and condemned SP leader Naresh Agarwal for making tea seller remarks in the past.

I think Modi and his team has deliberately chosen this initial profession of his life to tell rise of journey. They want to show masses and audience about his progress from lowest base of pyramid of society to  showcase this quality along with his decisive and quick ability to solve developmental issues. In his speech of BJP’s National Council meet he again rakes Congress with his Chaiwallah ammunition. In normal circumstances a person who is also prime ministerial candidate of national party this pity profession of tea selling would never be highlighted as prominently as is done by Modi. But Gujarat Chief Minister has aptly used this profession to send a positive massage in hoi polloi.