Modiji's Caste -- Mayank Jain

An Englishman, who is a good friend of mine, came this summer to Delhi from England. He was eager to know a lot about Modi ji -- especially about his caste. Surprisingly for him, most people in Delhi had no idea about Mr. Modi's caste. So this gentleman decided to go to Gujarat to research on Modiji's caste. 

 

He traveled by train so that he could mix with common people more easily. Seated next to him, in his compartment, he had for his company a Gujarati Rajput wearing an attractive turban. During the course of their discussion the Englishman told the Rajput about the purpose of his visit to Gujarat. The Rajput gentleman then laughed heartily. He said: "So you are going all the way to Gujarat to find about Modiji's caste!! Aray bhai! it is so simple! Modi ji is a Rajput. A Rajput protects his country from threats and Modiji has fought bravely against terrorism so he could only be a Rajput". 

A Pandit ji sitting next to the Rajput said: "Aray Bapu? What are you saying? Thakur Sahab! Modi ji is a Brahmin. Have you not seen his work in the field of education? He has built 30 new Universities and the drop out rate of children in primary schools is now almost zero from 50% ten years ago. So he definitely is a Brahmin."

A trader seated across diagonally was intently listening to the discussion. He said: "Suno bhai! You people know nothing. Modiji is a Vaishya bania. He has done so much for business in Gujarat and today Gujarat is known all over the world for being the safest investment destination in India. What else could Modiji be? He is definitely a bania." 

A Patel farmer relaxing on the top seat was amused at the varied claims of different men in the compartment. He said "Chup karo bhai! Modi ji is a Patel and he belongs to the farmer community. He has increased the agricultural land by 40 % in last ten years by using not only water from Narmada canal but also by using drip irrigation on a massive scale. Even the deserts in Gujarat have been painted green with fruit orchards even in places like Kutch." 

A vendor who was selling packed  dry fruits told them:"In reality Modi ji is a friend of the poor and he has no caste. He is a true Hindustani. Modiji has made the poor self-employable by giving them carpentray kits, repair-mechanic kits and beauty parlour kits"...and in today's Gujarat, the vendor said,  "even a poor tribals's son could become a pilot on government expense or after qualifying as a doctor a poor man's daughter could now get a private clinic as a gift from the Gujarat government and all poor were being given free houses to live in. So Modiji is just a simple man who cares for the poor and has no caste." The Englishman smiled and meticulously noted down the arguments of the vendor in his diary. He said: " It is great that people of all castes want Modi ji to be a member of their own castes but only one man -- a  poor vendor -- has the right answer."