Swachh Bharat: This man, Modi, knows how to hold the spade and that's the key

Prime Minister

's

initiative has earned both appreciation and criticism. However, that is not new with the politician who always has been a polarising figure ever since the riots broke out in Gujarat in 2002.

But whether Modi's Swachh Bharat mission will really make India a cleaner place is another question and the answer can be provided only by time. The more relevant point in this moment is: The prime minister really knows how to hold a broom or a spade and it shows the man is indeed one who has come up from the grassroots level.

PM Modi has so far been heard of uttering ideas that are not elitist in nature ('adopting villages', 'looking after the upbringing of your male child', 'clean India drive' etc etc) but yet struck a chord with his audience and supporters. There he returns a solid punch to critics who say the man has no regard for the moderate and only toe the rich and the affluent.

Mass leaders are getting fewer in India with each passing day. The followers of the great JP Narayan today have turned elitist in their conduct while leaders like Mamata Banerjee have lost connection with the ground beneath, thanks to the consequences of mismanagement of power. That's an irony no doubt.

And Modi is a smart politician who has utilised this vacuum to take him closer to various quarters. This is how grassroot experience helps in a public profession called politics and this is where the Congress is losing the battle again and again.