25 Years as Head of Government Is Not Personal Glory, Says PM Modi

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said completing 25 years as head of government was not a matter of personal achievement or glorification, asserting that he had lived his life driven by a mission rather than personal ambition.

Speaking at the ‘Viksit Bharat Sankalp Sabha’ in New Delhi, marking 25 years of his uninterrupted tenure as head of a government, Modi said he had never spent his time thinking about what position he would hold in the future.

“Today, I have completed 25 continuous years as the head of a government. This is the blessing of the people. I bow before the people of the country,” Modi said.

Modi recalled that when he took oath as Gujarat chief minister on October 7, 2001, he had never imagined that he would reach such a milestone.

While 25 years of uninterrupted public service may be viewed by people as an achievement, Modi said he did not see it as an occasion for personal glorification.

From organisational work to electoral politics

Recalling his days before entering electoral politics, Modi said he had spent time serving tribal communities in forest regions and living in mountainous areas. He later chose to work in the organisational structure of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

“At that time, my political report card only had organisational work. I participated in elections, but I had never contested one myself,” he said.

Modi said that if he had been driven by a personal ambition to make a mark in electoral politics, he could have entered the field much earlier.

“But pursuing personal political ambition was never my nature. I am a person who lived not for personal ambition, but for a mission,” he said, attributing this outlook to values instilled in him since childhood.

Credit to people, BJP workers

Modi credited the people of India and BJP workers for his 25-year journey in public life.

He said the trust of crores of citizens and the hard work of lakhs of party workers had been his greatest source of strength.

“For me, ‘Janata Janardan’ is nothing less than the divine,” Modi said.

He added that the experience and public trust accumulated over 25 years were not his personal assets but belonged to the nation.

“Whatever I am today, whichever position I hold and whatever role I am serving in, the biggest contribution has been that of the people,” he said.

‘I remain a lifelong student’

Modi said he considered himself a lifelong student and recalled how his schoolteachers in Vadnagar had taught him the importance of remaining eager to learn.

He said he continued to learn something new every day in an effort to contribute more to the country.

Those who supported him taught him the power of trust, while those who criticised him taught him the importance of introspection, Modi said.

“Those who stood with me showed me the power of trust. Those who opposed me taught me the power of democracy,” he said.

He also expressed gratitude to the BJP, NDA and political colleagues who, he said, had faith in democracy and the Constitution.

Referring to the elections he had contested for state assemblies and Parliament, Modi said people had repeatedly chosen him to serve them, while paying tribute to India’s democratic and constitutional institutions.

25 years of serving the people… I bow to 140 crore Indians for their trust and look forward to serving the nation with greater commitment in the times to come. https://t.co/rO1LXY9Csm

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 7, 2026

Focus on developed India by 2047

Modi said he had prayed at the Shri Vinayaka temple earlier in the day for the country and its people and sought divine strength to serve the nation with greater energy.

Looking ahead, he outlined several national goals, including making India a developed nation by 2047, building a self-reliant India, turning the country into a global manufacturing hub, hosting the Olympic Games and advancing India’s human spaceflight programme.

Calling the country’s confidence and energy “remarkable”, Modi urged citizens to move forward with a renewed resolve to take India to greater heights.

Recalling his earlier address from the Red Fort, where he had spoken about the power of collective effort, Modi once again called for a national resolve, saying: “We will achieve this.”