Early days in Politics

Narendra Modi was drawn to politics in his early teens and was a member of Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS). During the 1960s India-Pakistan war, even though he was only a young boy, he volunteered to serve soldiers traveling through railway stations. As a youth, he became a member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, a student body involved in anti-corruption. After having worked full time with them, he was then nominated as its representative in the BJP. Modi was also a campaigner in the RSS during his years in college and took on the task of encouraging the party members. Partnering with Shankersingh Vaghela, Modi began a strong cadre base in Gujarat. Narendra Modi has come from a humble background and is known for his simple lifestyle. He has a reputation of being a workaholic and introvert. Mr. Modi has tried to change his image from that of a Hindu Nationalist politician to that of a sincere administrator.The party began getting political attention and formed a coalition government in April 1990. After this, the BJP came to power in Gujarat in 1995. During this period, Modi was responsible for the Somnath to Ayodhya Rath Yatra and a similar trek from Kanyakumari in Southern India all the way up to Kashmir in the north.A careful observation of his rise to the national podium would evince how he remained glued to his fundamentals - continuing agitations during the nationwide Emergency, organizing Murli Manohar Joshis Ekta yatra (journey for unity), and impressing everyone with electoral strategy ahead of the 1995 state elections. As BJP tasted victory, Modi relished his newly ordained post of the partys General Secretary. The workaholic and loyal sevak moved to New Delhi to take up the new responsibility of managing the partys activities in Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Three summers whizzed past and Modi already had the post of National Secretary of the BJP under his kitty.