Never had desire to enter politics: PM Narendra Modi in 'Mann ki Baat'

I used to read books but Google has spoilt my habit of reading, as it's a shortcut if you want to seek a reference, says PM Modi

I never had the desire to enter politics, but now that I am a part of it I give my best on how to work for the people, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday.

Interacting with a group of National Cadet Corps cadets during his Mann ki Baat radio programme, Modi also said that as an NCC cadet in his school days, he never got punished.  Modi admitted that “due to Google”, his reading habits have suffered as there is a shortcut available to find references.

When one of the cadets asked him “had you not been a politician, what would you have been,” Modi described it as a “difficult question”.

“Now this is a very difficult question because every child goes through multiple phases in life. Sometimes one wants to become this, sometimes one wants to become that, but it is true that I never had the desire to enter politics, nor I ever thought about it,” he said.

He said but now that he is a politician, “I keep thinking how I can work for the welfare of the country.” The thought that had he not joined politics, what would he be doing never crosses his mind, Modi said.

“Now, wherever I am, I should live life to the fullest and I should wholeheartedly work for my country ... I have now dedicated myself for this purpose only,” he said.

Responding to a question on whether he gets time to watch television and read books, he said he was always fond of reading.

“I used to read books. But these days I am unable to read and due to Google, the habit of reading has deteriorated because if you want to seek a reference, then you immediately find a shortcut. As is the case with everyone, certain habits of mine have also been spoilt,” he said.

In response to a question on his NCC days, he said he was never punished "because I was in a way quite disciplined." He said once a misunderstanding had crept up when he climbed a tree at an NCC camp to save a bird entangled in a kite string.

The patience, restraint and maturity displayed by the people after the Supreme Court delivered its verdict in the Ayodhya case proves that there is nothing bigger than national interest for Indians, Modi said. He also said that after the “historic verdict”, the country has moved ahead on a new path, with a new resolve.

“The resolve … full of new hopes and aspirations. It is my hope and wish that New India imbibes this feeling and forges ahead in a spirit of peace, unity and goodwill,” he said.

Settling a fractious issue that goes back more than a century, the Supreme Court in a historic verdict on November 9 backed the construction of a Ram temple by a trust at the disputed site in Ayodhya, and ruled that an alternative five-acre plot must be found for a mosque in the holy town.

In his last address on Diwali, Modi had referred to the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgment on the Ayodhya issue. 

He had recalled how the government, civil society and people had maintained peace and harmony back then.

“This time too, when the Supreme Court pronounced its judgment on November 9, 1.3 billions Indians once again proved, that for them, national interest is supreme. The values of peace, unity and goodwill are paramount in our country," he said.

He said the SC verdict was “embraced with open arms.”

Modi said he used to read books but Google spoilt his habit of reading as it's a shortcut if you want to seek a reference. During the programme, a student asked him whether he gets time to watch TV or read book.