I am Narendra Modi’s Wife

In a poor village, the woman who is believed to be the estranged wife of the most powerful man in Gujarat lives in a one-room homeShe is clad in an ill-fitting blouse and a mod­est printed sari. Somewhat stooped, her face is wrinkled, her hands have obviously seen hard times and her hair is pulled back in a tight bun, making her look severe. Dirt grips the cracks of her slipper-clad feet. She could have been any woman in Rajosana village, Gujarat. But then, she is Jashodaben Chimanlal Modi. Everyone in this village knows her as Narendra Modi’s wife.After the post-Godhra Gujarat riots, Modi’s po­litical foes in Banaskantha district discovered her in this dusty village. Since then, Jashodaben has lived her life under intense scrutiny. Few among the 2,500 villagers, predominantly Muslim, dis­believe her story. Even Modi has neither con­firmed nor denied her muted claim. At the time of going to press, a faxed request for a comment was not returned by Modi’s office.
People close to her say that she was married to Modi in his native village, Vadnagar, in Mehsana district, when she was 18. At the time of her mar­riage, she had studied only up to Class VII. That is believed to have put a strain on their marriage. (Also, according to a villager, Jashodaben does not like to be photographed as she believes she is not good looking.) A few days after the mar­riage, Jashodaben was sent back to her father Chimanlal’s house to complete her education. As those who know her say, in a bid to please her husband and measure up to his exacting stand­ards, she started studying in Dholaka and com­pleted her SSC (old pattern) in 1972. Then she completed a primary teachers course and worked in Ahmedabad for three months.
Subsequently, on 23 March 1978, Jashodaben joined a primary school in Dekwali village in Banaskantha district. She was later transferred to the District Panchayat School in Roopal village where she worked for 12 years. On 2 December 1991, she came to Rajosana village, where she currently lives. Villagers say that though she has been to Ahmedabad occasionally, she was never asked to stay on by her husband.