Rao, Vajpayee, Singh and Modi came up the hard way with no godfathers to push them through. Then in 1991 prime minister aspirant Rajiv Gandhi suffered a tragic and untimely demise. But India did not belong also because its democratic credentials were still a bit dodgy. In the past, Indian prime ministers have been given the same privilege but it was clear, India did not belong. India’s last four prime ministers are a tribute to its democratic credentials precisely because they don’t belong to a dynastyWatching Narendra Modi address US lawmakers on Capitol Hill in Washington DC, it is easy to miss how far India has come.

Source: Mint June 10, 2016 02:03 UTC