Prime Minister Narendra Modi has never been comfortable with excessive sycophancy which tries to elevate him to the level of a deity.
According to highly placed political sources in New Delhi, those who know him well say this is how he has been since they have known him.
The latest news of such extreme adulation came in from Rajkot, Gujarat, where a temple has been erected for him. It was to be officially inaugurated on February 15.
The temple could be seen in the context of several Indian fans having a tendency to place their heroes on pedestals and deify them - seen commonly with super stars like Rajinikant and Amitabh Bachchan, or cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar and so on.
The Prime Minister was shocked when he heard news that a temple was being built for him and expressed his strong disapproval through Twitter.
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Asking those involved in the project to stop immediately, he said in his tweet, "I was appalled. This is shocking and against India's great traditions."
He further added, "Building such Temples is not what our culture teaches us. Personally, it made me very sad. Would urge those doing it not to do it."
In fact, in a unique move, he told his fans that if they really wanted to do something for him they should help him with his dream.
In the third tweet on the issue, he said, "If you have time and resources, please devote the same towards fulfilling our dream of a Clean India."
Such humility has few parallels.
This is not the first time Modi has spoken against extreme adulation. In the past, he has spoken out against his fans paying homage to him - whether it was during the election campaign or after - and always asked people to be rational in their adulation and take steps that will benefit society.
The Prime Minister has also not spared government institutions which are trying to pay homage to him. He is not a man who is comfortable being glorified in the same space as the heroes of India's history in textbooks.
In fact, when there was a proposal suggested by several states to include his name in school textbooks, he out rightly rejected it.
A minister from one state that included Modi's name in a textbook, had even said, "The chapters may include events starting from his birth, his humble family background, school days, how he overcame various struggles at different stages of his life and the circumstances behind his decision to become a monk. These events will be included in the syllabus of primary schools, such as fifth, sixth and seventh standards."
The very next day after the announcement, on May 29, the Prime Minister spoke out strongly against this move on Twitter, "I firmly believe that the life story of living individuals should not be included as a part of the school curriculum."
Narendra Modi is a man who has always studied the greats and read their writings. He has even asked people to study about the heroes of Indian history and learn from their wisdom - be it Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Swami Vivekananda and Sardar Vallabhai Patel, among others.
So, he found this move to include his name in textbooks quite unpalatable. He put out another tweet on this issue that said, "India has a rich history of several stalwarts who made India what it is today. Young minds should read about these greats and emulate them."
In another instance, he had come down hard on his over enthusiastic campaigners coining the phrase, "Har har Modi, ghar ghar Modi," which is a chant that is said in praise of Mahadev or Lord Shiva.
He had said on Twitter again, "Some enthusiastic supporters are using slogan 'Har Har Modi...' I respect their enthusiasm but request not to use this slogan in the future."
When he was the chief minister of Gujarat and running his election campaign as the BJP's prime ministerial candidate, Dipak Kumar from Muzaffarpur in Bihar cycled all the way from his hometown to Gandhinagar. Narendra Modi met him and accepted his wishes, but told him to focus on his education and do good deeds for society.
Prime Minister Modi has also objected to abuse or violence by those who associate themselves with him. He has rebuked fringe elements that have attacked the minorities in his name and said, "Modi haters go to Pakistan."
He has even chastised his ministers for saying hateful things in their speeches and recently pulled up Minister of State Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti in Parliament. She had made some crass references in a public appearance. He did not shy away from appearing in both Houses of Parliament to express his stern disapproval of such statements.
This makes Narendra Modi the only leader to speak up like this.
Twitter was abuzz with tweets on whether the Gandhis' ever stopped fans from constructing a Sonia Temple and raising them to divine status.
The same was asked of Aam Aadmi Party supporters and whether their leader would openly come out and stop such displays of admiration.
In fact, this is the same Narendra Modi who has always shown generosity and magnanimity in dealing with those who disagree with him.
U R Ananthamurthy was very clear that if Narendra Modi would become Prime Minister, he would leave the country. But, when he did become the Prime Minister and Mr. Ananthamurthy passed away, one of the earliest condolence messages came from Narendra Modi, who recognized his contribution to literature.
Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar mocked his origins and Ram Guha called him semi-literate, but not once did Narendra Modi show any bitterness towards them.
Narendra Modi has always made it a point to speak out for what is right and acceptable, and for him building temples and adding his name to textbooks, making hateful speeches in his name, and deifying him, is just not acceptable.
