Dimension Robert vs Namo Verdict

Meritocratic Rise Narendra Modi may have risen from a humble background to become the CM of Gujarat but then Robert Vadra was also a rank outsider when he overnight propelled himself into the Congress party’s top echelons. Despite lack of pedigree and connections, he vaulted his way into Priyanka’s heart. Vadra’s rise has been far more meritocratic and inspiring to the youth of the country

Family Values Robert Vadra is the quintessential family man. In an earlier interview, he said, “I’ve lost 20 kg in five years. And in this much time, if I’d wanted to, I could have become a big celebrity. It’s been a fight to stay normal.” He insisted toward the end of the interview, “I gave up my life for Priyanka, fighting every day to not be a celebrity.” Robert has always placed family over self even at the cost of personal ambition. Contrast this with Modi’s greed for power at the expense of domestic bliss.

Electability Robert Vadra once said, “I can win an election from anywhere,” a level of confidence which Narendra Modi lacks. Ultimately, whichever constituency Vadra chooses to represent, he will make a huge difference to it unlike Modi. For instance, the first family’s citadels, Rae Bareilly and Amethi, enjoy 24 hour power supply while most parts of Uttar Pradesh face power cuts. However, Narendra Modi’s constituency Maninagar does not enjoy such privilege. It has 24 hour power supply, but then so does the rest of Gujarat. Robert is a pan-Indian name with appeal not restricted to a particular state.

Self-abnegation Vadra once memorably said, “Abhi Rahul ka time chal raha hai, phir Priyanka ka time aayega, phir parivar ke doosre sadasyon ka.” Contrast this with Modi’s impatience to land the top job. This shows that Robert Vadra, in the best traditions of Indian self-renunciation, is patient and is willing to wait for his turn unlike Modi.

Business Acumen Modi earned his business chops as a tea vendor. Road side tea retailing, colloquially called cutting chai in urban India, has sound economics. It requires little capital, has low cost manufacturing, and tends to have a diversified customer base and good customer loyalty. All it requires is for the entrepreneur to wake up at dawn and put in hard labour until dusk. Success in this sector requires grunt work and little else. As against Modi, Robert Vadra has built a successful business empire spanning real estate, hotels and many other sectors through sheer grit and shrewd judgement. Moreover, competitors can assault tea vendors but Robert Vadra’s business has such a deep moat around it that it is virtually unassailable by competition. It is so creditworthy that it can get loans at zero per cent interest rates and its returns on equity are so high that its value increases 600 times in three years. Vadra’s achievement is more commendable since he is married into a family which has a history of destroying businesses rather than creating them. Those who still think that Modi is more business savvy need to have a counselling session with DLF chairman K. P. Singh.

Social Media Influence Modi boasts of a huge following on Facebook and Twitter overlooking the fact that quality is more important than quantity. How many updates by Modi on Facebook and Twitter can you remember? As against this Robert Vadra’s update on Facebook, “Mango people in banana republic”, has entered the hall of fame alongside “Tum mujhe khoon do, main tumhe azadi dunga” and “Meri Jhansi nahi doongi”. Vadra has a higher social media quotient than NaMo.

PR Modi has hired a PR agency to tom-tom his dubious achievements and contribution to Gujarat’s phenomenal success. However, Vadra doesn’t need to hire anyone as his actions speak for themselves. A civil society activist like Kejriwal has done a far better job of highlighting Vadra’s extraordinary success than any PR agency could. Truly great men don’t need PR agencies.

General Knowledge Modi peppers his speeches with corny business jargon and inappropriate canine analogies that are bereft of wit or depth. In contrast, the “mango people in a banana republic” comment underscores the point that unlike Modi Robert Vadra is well read and knowledgeable, even of distant geographies such as Latin America, from where the ‘banana republic’ phrase originated. Vadra is far more erudite than his Gujarat rival