 "As Prime Minister Modi takes his place at the G7 table, India will be watching not just what he says but what the world wants to hear. PTI")
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi completed 11 years at the helm of India’s government in 2025, his tenure has been marked by landmark achievements transforming India into one of the fastest-growing major economies and amplifying its global stature.
Yet, alongside the record-breaking electoral mandates and economic reforms lies a decisions that triggered intense debates, and protests in some cases. From demonetisation and Aadhaar linkage to Article 370, the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the now-repealed farm reform laws, PM Modi’s leadership has waded through transformative legislation and also contentious policymaking over the past 11 years.
Demonetisation: Shock and awe
One of the most seismic events in Modi’s tenure came in November 2016, when PM Modi announced the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 currency notes — effectively invalidating over 86 per cent of the cash in circulation overnight. While the stated aims were noble — curbing black money, rooting out counterfeit currency and fostering a digital economy — the execution and outcomes triggered deep debate.
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Small businesses, informal sectors and daily wage earners bore the brunt. The Reserve Bank of India later reported that over 99 per cent of the invalidated currency was returned to the system raising questions about the effectiveness of the move in flushing out illicit wealth. While critics argued that the short-term economic pain wasn’t matched by long-term gains, his supporters credited the move for formalising parts of the economy and accelerating digital payments.
Aadhaar and surveillance fears
The push to link Aadhaar — India’s unique biometric identification system — with a range of services including bank accounts, SIM cards and welfare schemes, was another flashpoint. Proponents touted it as a tool for efficient governance and reduction of leakages in welfare delivery. However, privacy advocates and civil society groups raised alarms over surveillance concerns, data security and exclusion of vulnerable groups from welfare entitlements due to authentication failures.
Despite multiple court challenges, the Supreme Court upheld Aadhaar’s constitutional validity in 2018. The debate it sparked continues to shape the discourse around digital rights and state surveillance in India.
Diplomatic gamble: Joint probe with Pakistan
In a rare and surprising diplomatic overture, the Modi government agreed to a joint investigation with Pakistan’s intelligence apparatus into the 2016 Pathankot terror attack. The move invited sharp criticism, particularly from within nationalist circles, which saw it as undermining India’s sovereignty.
The investigation yielded few tangible outcomes, and subsequent events, including the Uri and Pulwama attacks, reignited scepticism over trusting Pakistan on matters of terrorism. In hindsight, the joint probe stands out as a rare concilliatory gesture in an otherwise hawkish foreign policy stance vis-à-vis Pakistan.
Abrogation of Article 370 and the Jammu & Kashmir bifurcation
On August 5, 2019, the government scrapped Article 370, ending the special constitutional status of Jammu and Kashmir. In parallel, the state was bifurcated into two Union Territories—J&K and Ladakh. Supporters hailed it as a long-overdue integration of the region into the Indian Union promising development and security.
However, the move was accompanied by a communication blackout, detention of several political leaders and a heavy security clampdown to keep separatists in check. Many regarded it as a unilateral decision that upended federalism and alienated Kashmiris. While the region has seen relative stability post-370 abrogation, political normalcy is returning gradually, and in the first assembly election held in 2024, Kashmiris voted in record number.
CAA and protests
The passage of the CAA in 2019 triggered one of the largest nationwide protest movements in decades. The Act aimed to fast-track Indian citizenship for non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The government framed it as a humanitarian gesture for persecuted minorities. Opponents, however, viewed it as discriminatory and contrary to India’s secular ethos.
Widespread protests, particularly at Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh hit headlines in India and outside. The protests were eventually dispersed after the Covid-19 outbreak, but the episode left a lasting impression. While the government has since downplayed plans for a National Register of Citizens (NRC), the CAA remains a contentious issue in Indian politics.
Farm laws and their repeal: Reform or overreach?
In 2020, the Modi government passed three agricultural reform laws intended to liberalise India’s farm sector by allowing farmers to sell produce outside mandis, enter into contracts and encourage private investment. These laws were initially framed as a necessary transformation for agrarian prosperity.
However, farmers — especially from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh — saw them as a threat to their livelihoods fearing the end of Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) and corporatisation of agriculture. The year-long protest at Delhi’s borders drew global attention and immense domestic solidarity. The government’s eventual repeal of the laws in 2021 marked a rare instance of policy reversal by the Modi government.
PM Modi addressed the nation, particularly farmers, when he announced the decision to repeal the three reform laws. He said the government failed to communicate to the protesting farmers that the laws were aimed at their progress.
Economic challenges: Growth amid fluctuations
While India remained one of the world’s fastest-growing economies during PM Modi’s tenure, that growth was uneven. The GDP growth rate slowed from 8.2 per cent in FY16 to below 4 per cent by the onset of Covid-19. Structural issues such as declining private investment, jobless growth and banking sector stress persisted.
Unemployment emerged as a pressing concern, especially among youth and educated populations. The National Statistical Office’s (NSO) leaked 2017–18 survey, later confirmed officially, showed joblessness at a 45-year high. The government often highlighted job creation through Mudra loans and gig platforms, but critics argued that these figures masked underemployment and informalisation.
The pandemic dealt another blow. The sudden lockdown in March 2020 displaced millions of migrant workers, leading to a humanitarian crisis that exposed gaps in India’s urban-rural safety net. Though the economy rebounded in 2021–23, inflation, income disparity and rural distress remained persistent challenges.
However, while India’s data seen alone reflected a concerning picture, when seen from the global prism, the country remained a “bright spot” of the world economy. It has consistently outpaced major economic powers including China, the US, the European Union and Germany in terms of GDP growth rate since 2015.
The latest World Bank report indicates that India’s growth has uplifted the average per capita income of South Asia region, which grew at over five per cent rate. But if India’s contribution is taken out, the per capita growth rate of the South Asian region drops to about three per cent.
Operation Sindoor and India’s image management
In the context of regional terrorism, India’s strategic communication saw a visible recalibration. Pakistan’s alignment with Islamist terror groups post-2019, including carrying out Hamas-style terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, pushed India to carefully manage its global image.
Operation Sindoor, as the military action against Pakistan-based terror outfits and their backers, delivered India’s message to Pakistan against terrorism militarily. In diplomacy, its purpose was communicated to all geostrategic powers, reshaping India’s counterterrorism approach. While not publicly acknowledged as an official policy, this campaign highlighted India’s emphasis on proportionality, legality and securing international legitimacy.
The challenge lay in balancing internal security interests with global optics.
A complex legacy
Prime Minister Modi’s 11 years in power have been hailed as transformative by Indian as well as global agencies — administratively, economically and geopolitically. Infrastructure push, digital governance, welfare schemes like Jan Dhan, Ujjwala and Swachh Bharat and assertive diplomacy have expanded the reach and scope of the Indian state.
While the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have been effusive in praising India’s economic resilience and consistency in growth, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has also hailed the Modi government push for social protection schemes. The ILO has pointed out that a record 94 crore people are now covered by the Modi government’s social protection schemes, raising the coverage from 19 per cent to over 64 per cent in a decade.
Yet, some of these gains have been accompanied by moments of deep societal churn and contestation. The tension between bold reform and democratic consent has surfaced on occasions. The opposition has criticised the government accusing it of being “majoritarian” and of hurting institutional autonomy. However, the government has attained a unique feat of winning the third consecutive term in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, with PM Modi equalling the record of Jawaharlal Nehru by taking third consecutive oath as the prime minister of the country.