Narendra Modi And His “Gifts”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has his own charming way of dealing with foreign heads of states. Be it his savvy way of trying to impress the Japanese by writing in Kana script on Twitter or personally selecting gifts for the heads of states, the Prime Minister does things in style and with élan.

According to the latest reports, Modi is now hunting for that “perfect gift” for US President Barack Obama. Boom News lists down the gifts the Indian Prime Minsiter presented to various leaders when they met.

Modi’s Gift to Australian Prime Minister: When Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott presented the 'Nehru Jacket', Narendra Modi reciprocated by presenting him a book on yoga. The savvy Australian Prime Minister is known for his liking towards traditional Indian forms of physical, mental, and spiritual practices of yoga. Abbott extended his friendly guestre further when he handed over two antique statues of Hindu deities, which were allegedly stolen from temples in Tamil Nadu before being bought by art galleries in Australia.

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Modi’s Gift to Japanese Emperor: The Prime Minister won many Japanese hearts when he played the Taiko drums, addressed scholars at the Sacred Heart University and posed for selfies with students. However, the Indian media did not spare him and went into a frenzy blaming him of communalism when he presented the Bhagavad Gita and other books by Swami Vivekananda to Japanese Emperor Akihito. The Bhagavad Gita was presented to the Emperor in Japanese as well as Sanskrit.

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Modi’s Gift to Chinese Premier: The Indian Prime Minister presented Chinese President Xi Jinping the Bhagavad Gita translated in Hanzi. Modi also presented the Chinese premier a charkha and a facsimile of the scroll given to Mahatma Gandhi in Johannesburg in 1908 by the Chinese community in South Africa. Apart from that, Modi also presented him an oil painting depicting the Dandi March by artist Dinu Patel.

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Modi’s Gift Hunting For US President: America might have denied visa to Modi in 2005 owing to his alleged involvement in the Gujarat riots but the former Gujarat Chief Minister, in 2011, gifted the American President Barack Obama a book, 'Convenient Action: Gujarat Initiatives” authored by himself. In return, Obama reciprocated with a “Thank you” note. As of now, according to media reports , Modi is on a “gift hunting mode“ for Obama.

Political analysts say Modi is planning to offer visa-on-arrival for American tourists, which could benefit relations between the two countries. While this may or may not be on cards, we will have to wait and watch what Modi has to offer the American President.

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