Modi's rakhi sister, a Pakistan-origin woman, is in awe of him

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Pakistan-origin woman Qamar Mohsin Shaikh, who has been living in India for the past 35 years, is in awe of her 'rakhi' brother Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She credits him for everything she is today.

Presently living in Ahmedabad, Shaikh travelled to Delhi on Monday to tie the thread of sibling bond on Modi's wrist, the way she says she has been doing for the last 23 years.

"I have been tying rakhi to Narendra Bhai for the last 23 years. I am extremely excited to be able to do it this time too," Shaikh, who came to India from Pakistan after her marriage, told a news channel in Delhi.

What made this year's rakhi special for her was the fact that she had thought Modi would be too busy and she would not get to meet him.

But to her surprise, Shaikh said, she got a call two days back from Modi and "I was very happy to know that and I started preparing for Raksha Bandhan" with the Prime Minister.

She said Modi spent a few seconds with each visitor who had come to greet him and tie rakhi, but "I was surprised and extremely happy that he spent more time with me".

"I told him whatever I am today is because of you. He put his hand on my head to bless me. He asked me about my son Sufian and my husband Mohsin. I feel like the luckiest and happiest person in the world."

Shaikh said her first Raksha Bandhan with Modi was when he was a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker.

"When I first tied rakhi to Narendra Bhai, he was a karyakarta but with his sheer hard work and vision, he has become the Prime Minister," she said.

"This relationship is now 23 years old. I am proud to be a sister of the Prime Minister Modi," Shaikh told Zee News.

She said she was apprehensive when she came from Pakistan and married an Indian man. "But life became easier when I got a brother like Narendra Bhai. He has never made me feel that I don't have my brother around."

Asked what gift she wanted from Modi on Raksha Bandhan, Shaik said: "I just need his blessings. His blessings are what count the most. His blessings are with me and that is why I am here. I will always remember him. His hand is behind my every success."

She also shared how Modi would express the desire to see the paintings drawn by her husband and how he would also joke with his son, who she says is a swimmer and calls the Prime Minister "maama".