Peace has returned to Gujarat, claims Modi, 30 march, 2002, ghatkoparweb.com

MUMBAI: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in an exclusive interview to The Times of India says his state is returning to normalcy. Excerpts from the interview.

In your view, was the burning of 58 kar sevaks in the Sabarmati Express at Godhra a planned attacked or a spontaneous one? Was there an untoward incident on the station platform which sparked the attack?

If one looks at the nature of the heinous attack on the Sabarmati Express and the manner in which 58 innocent kar sevaks were burnt alive in a compartment of the ill-fated train, it would be apparent that it was a deep rooted conspiracy and a pre-planned, cold-blooded attack.

The train arrived at Godhra at 7:43 a.m. and within five minutes, i.e. at 7:48 a.m., it left Godhra. It was stopped at Signal Falia about 500 metres away and a mob attacked the compartment collectively. How can such an attack be spontaneous? Moreover, the train departed from Faizabad and arrived in Godhra after 36 long hours, and no incident was reported on the behaviour of the kar sevaks en route. But the president of the Gujarat unit of the Congress, Amarsinh Chaudhary, has alleged in a television interview that the attack took place because the kar sevaks did not pay money for a cup of tea at the railway station. Is it not ridiculous to justify a ghastly incident such as this?

There are reports that the Tableegi Jamiat of the Deobandi school of Islam has been fanning fundamentalist ideology in Godhra and that there were instances of members of the majority community being burnt in the past few years. Are these reports true? If so, on what dates were they burned and by whom and what is the action taken against the persons concerned?

The long history of communal violence in Godhra is not an unknown phenomenon, but it has taken an ugly and serious turn in the last 25-30 years. Two families have been burnt alive in the same area in the past in a ghastly incident. And ten years ago, four teachers, including two women teachers, were mercilessly cut to death in a school in the presence of children.

While the then Congress rulers have registered court cases in a routine manner, they have failed miserably to punish the real culprits. Not only this, the main culprit named Asaraf was done to death while in a jail by other accused persons and the whole event was pushed into a corner forever.

Reports of the violence in Ahmedabad give the impression that it was well organised. The reports said armed mobs went around with voting lists targeting Muslims. An IAS officer, Harsh Mander, has given a chilling account of the violence in Ahmedabad. Why has the state not been able to tackle the situation? There are allegations that the police was partisan. Please comment.

Those who are acquainted with Gujarat know that this state is very sensitive to communal violence. There have been serious communal disturbances triggered by petty and minor incidents relating to kite flying or a cricket match. In the past, communal violence has broken out in 200 places at a time and curfew has been imposed in about 300 villages and towns for months together.

Compared to this, the Godhra massacre was unparalleled in history, but we took all proactive measures to curb the violence within 72 hours. The police fired more than 3,900 rounds initially and the army was airlifted from the border area and deployed within 16 hours in the disturbed areas. There was no complacency on the part of the government or the police.

Even now the situation doesn't seem to be under control. What is the reason for this?

There are about 18,000 villages in the state, of which disturbances were reported in no more than 50 villages. Of the 242 municipal towns in the state, incidents took place in less than 40 towns. After March 3, no major incidents of violence have been reported. Not only this, religious rituals were observed on the eve of Holi in all 18,000 villages in a peaceful manner, while Moharrum was observed with tazia processions at more than 1,000 places. Ten lakh students have appeared in the SSC\HSC examinations and the process of village panchayat elections is going on in a peaceful manner in about 1,700 villages.

Lakhs of pilgrims are on padyatras to reach Dakor Yatradham for the full moon day celebrations and in Palitana, a famous Jain pilgrim centre, lakhs of Jain families are coming in from far-off areas. Even in Ambaji in north Gujarat, thousands of pilgrims have come together for prayers. Does this not suggest peace and normalcy in the state?

There are allegations that you have moved out police officers who took a tough stance against the rioters. Please comment.

Again, this is a false and misconceived allegation. The issue of promotions of police officers was long pending and it was purely an administrative decision. There was absolutely no political motive in the transfers of officers. Those who are indulging in false propaganda are only damaging the morale of the forces.

Do you think that a section of the BJP itself is behind the campaign for your removal?

I am getting unequivocal support from all the BJP workers and leaders of the state. They have been a constant source of encouragement and inspiration for my government's fight against terrorist and anti-social activities. I am committed to protecting the people of Gujarat. The talk of internal bickering is baseless and mischievous.

Is it true that you are in favour of mid-term elections in Gujarat?

It is unfortunate that when my entire focus as a leader of the state is to provide relief to all those who have been affected, such issues are being raised. My sole concern today is to bring total normalcy to my state and to create an atmosphere of mutual trust and harmony. In this grave period, I do not have any time to think of any political activity.

Two of your ministers are reported to have been in the Ahmedabad police control room when the riots broke out in Ahmedabad. What action do you plan against them?

It has always been a tradition in this state for senior ministers to monitor and coordinate the rescue and relief measures from the control rooms. This is treated as a routine and regular exercise. During the earthquake, ministers were actively coordinating the relief activities from the police control room. I feel distressed to see that this also is being twisted by the media, with the sole objective of maligning my government

top