NARENDRA Modi, Prime Minister of India and leader of world’s largest democracy, received a rock star’s welcome in Australia and Fiji when he visited both the countries last month this year.
On November 19, the Government and people of Fiji received him with great enthusiasm and excitement. Even some of my friends from the western side drove early in the morning to Suva so that they could catch a glimpse of this political megastar of India.
According to a report published in The Fiji Times on 26th November, we came to know that he has a wife whom “he has never divorced despite not living with her for decades”.
This kind of news created great curiosity in people like me who are regular readers of The Fiji Times.
Some of my friends asked me if I could write a story on this subject.
Many people thought that Narendra Modi was still a bachelor.
Previously in all the official and unofficial documents, he used to mark the space with a short dash where a candidate had to mention whether or not he was married and the officials concerned accepted his “dash” and did not question him further but this year when the days of parliamentary elections approached, the Election Commission of India insisted that he gives correct information about his marital status.
Mr Modi was left with no option and he had to write in his affidavit that he was married and his wife’s name was Jashodaben. As soon as the media in India and in some foreign countries received this news, they began to write stories for their papers on Modi-Jashodaben relationship.
That he was married became a sensational news all over India and Jashodaben who was forgotten by her husband for many decades became a household name in a few days. It was great news for Jashodaben because her husband, though only on paper, had admitted that she was his wife.
For a long time, nobody knew for certain that a lady by the name of Jashodaben existed in this world.
The relationship status of Mr Modi was always a matter of intense media speculation.
Now when the media persons approached her for an interview, very enthusiastically she said, “I am the wife of the Prime Minister of India”.
When she was only 17 and Modi 18, they were married but separated within three years of marriage. During these three years, they hardly lived a few months together.
He told her that he wanted to do “bigger things” in his life and therefore could not live with her.
According to a report published in the Financial Express newspaper, Mr Modi advised Jashodaben, “I will be travelling across the country and will go where I please; what will you do following me? You are still very young; you must instead focus on pursuing your studies.”
Mr Modi became actively involved in a few social and religious organisations and began to take interest in politics of the country. Jashodaben began to pursue her studies, did her Primary Teacher Training course, completed it in 1976 and got a job as primary school teacher in 1978. She enjoyed her work and taught classes from the first to fifth grades.
Even today Jashodaben, who is now 62 years old, is living her retired life in the home of his elder brother, Ashok Modi. Although separated, she did not have any bad feelings against her husband. Actually she prays daily for his health and happiness and for his success in the career he has chosen for himself.
Her life reminds me of two great personalities of Indian history.
Prince Siddarth Gautma, also known as Gautma Budha, founder of Budhism, left behind his beautiful, young wife, Yashodhara, kingdom and comfortable palaces of Kapilavastu for a higher mission, which he called nirvana.
Goswami Tulsi Das, a great saint-poet, said goodbye to his wife Ratanawali and went to live far away from home so that he could concentrate on completing Ramayana, titled Ramcharitmanas, Hanumaan Chalisa and a few other religious books. There are so many examples of Indian women who lived for others, forgetting their own happiness and comforts, and their virtue of service and faithfulness shines radiantly on the pages of Indian history.
Jashodaben perhaps met the same fate as did Yashodhara and Ratanawali. Whether it is Yashodhara or Ratanwali, Sita , Savitri, or Shakuntla , self-sacrifice and suffering are the characteristics of the Indian womanhood, a noble heritage that is handed down through the ages.
But the modern generations whether they are in India or Fiji won’t agree to lead this kind of life. They would be critical of the attitude shown by persons like Mr Modi.
Many sympathisers of Jashodaben would like to see that she joins her husband in Delhi.
To a journalist in Mumbai, she was reported to have said, “I wish to be with him. If he calls me; I am eager to start a new life with him but it has to be he who calls.”
* Jogindar Singh Kanwal, former Principal of Khalsa College and author of many Hindi and English books is a frequent writer for The Fiji Times. The views expressed are his and not of this newspaper. Email: Kanwal@connect.com.fj
