President Anura Kumara congratulates Modi for becoming India's longest continuously serving PM

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has become the country’s longest continuously serving elected premier, marking 12 years at the helm of the central government during a period that saw the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) become the national political hegemon, expand to newer regions, and attract support from myriad communities.

Modi will have served 4,399 days as Prime Minister on Wednesday, becoming the longest continuously serving elected premier.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake also extended his congratulations to Prime Minister Modi on his milestone.

The President in a letter said, “This milestone is a testament not only to your years in office, but also to the trust and confidence that the people of the world’s largest democracy have repeatedly placed in your leadership.”

India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru first assumed office in 1947, won the first election in India in 1951-52 and remained in office until his death in 1964. Indira Gandhi, India’s first woman PM, was in office for a little less than 16 years, but in two separate stints.

Over the course of the past 12 years, the government has managed to eradicate the once dreaded left-wing terrorism, revolutionise welfare delivery, build the JAM trinity and UPI, boosted rail, road and airport infrastructure, reshaped India’s defence and nuclear doctrine, and avenge Pakistani terrorism, especially the Pahalgam terror attack, with Operation Sindoor. The government has also steered the country through a pandemic and three devastating global wars.

Modi will have served 4,399 days as Prime Minister on Wednesday, becoming the longest continuously serving elected premier. India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru first assumed office in 1947, won the first election in India in 1951-52 and remained in office until his death in 1964. Indira Gandhi, India’s first woman PM, was in office for a little less than 16 years, but in two separate stints.

The PM said the 12-year journey was dedicated to trust, development, and public welfare. “With the blessings of 1.4 billion fellow citizens and the spirit of nation first, we have spared no effort in empowering our youth, women, and our farmer brothers and sisters. It is the result of these tireless efforts that today, from infrastructure to the digital revolution, the country has gained a new identity on the global stage,” he said.

On May 26, 2014, Modi took charge as India’s Prime Minister. He was re-elected with a bigger mandate in 2019 and became the PM for the third time in 2024.

As congratulatory messages poured in from across the world, BJP president Nitin Nabin said Modi’s tenure was marked by development and public welfare, with the country having made unprecedented progress across sectors. He said more than 250 million people were pulled out of poverty through schemes designed for poverty alleviation such as 40 million permanent houses; subsidised health care for 600 million; 570 million Mudra loans for economic empowerment; and construction of 120 million toilets, which specifically addressed women’s dignity.

The party chief also said that record defence exports worth ₹38,400 crore were achieved, along with record overall exports worth ₹79 lakh crore. On the security front, he said the government has been able to end left-wing terror, clamp down on terror networks in the border states and enhance security measures on the ground.

Speaking at the event which was attended by Union ministers Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Dharmendra Pradhan, Piyush Goyal, and Ashwini Vaishnaw and BJP general secretaries Vinod Tawde and Tarun Chugh, Nabin also referred to the government taking strong political decisions including the effective abrogation of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir.

Union minister for parliamentary affairs Kiren Rijiju said the PM’s 4,399 days in office were a moment of pride for the party. “I believe the work accomplished for our country during this tenure will be etched in golden letters, marking the time when, under Modi ji’s leadership, India took its first steps towards becoming a Viksit Bharat [developed India].”

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said the country was witnessing history. “...On this day, PM Modi established himself as the longest-serving democratically elected Prime Minister of India... India’s domestic production rate has reached an average of 7% over the past 12 years, on the basis of which an unprecedented transformation has also occurred.”

This 12-year tenure, he said, will take India’s direction, position and prominence on the global stage to new heights. “Whether it is the G20 presidency, International Yoga Day, or Vaccine Maitri... Whether we talk about national highways, which have increased to 1.5 lakh kilometres, in the field of civil aviation, we are going from 74 airports to 160, in the railway sector, there has been a fourfold increase in the development rate and capacity of railways... Unprecedented transformation has also come in social development…” he said.

Leaders across the world also congratulated the PM and acknowledged his transformative governance, advocacy for the Global South, and his vision of an inclusive and economically dynamic India.

James Marape, Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, in a video message, described Modi as “a role model and an example of leadership” and said, “lifting over 200 million people out of poverty to a good life today is an amazing feat.”

Kamla Persad-Bissessar, PM of Trinidad and Tobago, said under Modi’s leadership, India evolved as a leading voice on global matters.

Over the course of the week, the BJP will amplify these achievements of the Modi government, underlining how changes have been made across sectors and reforms ushered in public service, expansion of social security net, empowerment of socially and economically disadvantaged and self-reliance in defence and energy production said people aware of the details.

Modi will chair a meeting of the chief ministers and deputy chief ministers of NDA-ruled states and Union Territories on Thursday. According to people aware of the details, the meeting will take stock of the implementation of policies and programmes initiated by the government, the roadmap for the Viksit Bharat campaign and the measures being taken to mitigate the impact of the ongoing West Asia crisis.

There is also speculation that the meetings will be followed by a rejig in the council of ministers as well as in the organisational setup of the BJP. Since the government came to power for the third term in June 2024, there have been no changes in the council of ministers. Recently two Union ministers of state, Ravneet Singh Bittu and George Kurien, were not renominated to the Rajya Sabha on the expiry of their tenure, which has stoked speculation that new faces will be inducted into the Modi cabinet.

Source: Hindustan Times

--Agencies