India is being modi-fied

On the surface this might look like yet another case of gang-rape.  Another minor assaulted by a bunch of pervert criminals.
But is there is a silver lining? Let’s first get the news.

Mother Takes Son to Police for Allegedly Raping Minor

All India | Press Trust of India | Updated: September 06, 2014 15:33 IST

CANNING, WEST BENGAL: A young bus conductor from West Bengal was arrested by the police for allegedly raping a minor girl near a school after his mother complained to the police.

Ainur Bibi lodged a complaint against her son Najir Seikh at the Diamond Harbour police station in the South 24-Parganas district after rescuing the seven-year-old girl yesterday, a senior police official said.

According to the police, Ainur Bibi came to know about the incident after Nazir talked about it after returning home in a drunk state.

Najir and three others had allegedly raped the Class 1 student when she had gone outside the school to urinate as the school toilet was closed. She was left unconscious near a bush.

“After hearing about the incident, Ainur Bibi rushed to rescue the girl. She took the girl to Diamond Harbour hospital and then lodged a complaint against her son with the police,” the official said.

The family members of the girl were unaware of the incident when Ainur Bibi took the girl to the hospital and later reached the police station.

How significant is this whole incidence?

First it re-emphasizes the need for toilet facilities in school, especially for girl students.

Besides being a major cause of girl student‘s drop out from schools, lack of the privacy of a toilet has forced a vast section of our women population to continue this undignified practice, increasing their vulnerability to sexual predators. 

Just the other day, on an ‘uncharacteristic’ use of the Independence Day speech platform, Prime Minister, Narendra Modi dared to touch on such unglamorous topics as female feticide, dignity and security of women and challenged the government and corporate world to rise to the occasion and do the minimum to provide toilets in all school within the time frame of one year, specially keeping the girl students in mind.

As an extension, a goal has been set for every house to have toilet & safe drinking water facility by 2019.

Secondly, this incidence opens our eyes to the appeal that the Prime Minister made to all parents. “Parents ask their daughters hundreds of questions, but have any parents ever dared to ask their son as to where he is going, why he is going out, who his friends are. After all, a rapist is also somebody’s son … .. if every parent decides to impose as many restrictions on the sons as have been imposed on our daughters – try to do this with your sons, try to ask such questions of them.”

How better can a mother respond to such a clarion call than what Ainur Bibi did?

How can one judge her as a mother? Can we criticize her for failing to protect and shield her son from the law? Or should be salute her for having the courage to try to bring her son back to the right path, to educate and make him more humane?

Thirdly, is this a kind of news that should be spread as an example? Should this lady be felicitated? Should her story be allowed to reach each and every home in the country? Should the media promote it with an equal vigor of a Shah Rukh movie or a comparable glory of a Sachin Tendulker century?

Dr A. P.J. Kalam, our president reportedly, once lamented, “Why is the media here so negative? Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements?”

Should our media, busy is raising issues and criticizing, alleged often with obvious bias and vested interest, for once, rise to the occasion and take the responsibility and challenge to make Ainur Bibi a household name so that more and more parents take a renewed interest in building the life of their children and in the process, build the nation, one person at a time.

May be then we can hope for a modified India, in not so far a future.
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A prayer for Mr. Narendra Modi.

Loksabha election 2014! What a show of democracy! Kudos to the Indian electorate. Congratutalions to the millions who voted for a change.

And salute to the person who rose from a tea stall, worked through the ranks without personal ambitions, gathered name and fame as an able and dedicated administrator, amd worked, undaunted by relentless attacks of opportunistic subhumans over the years, with a singular mission of improving the life of his countrymen and a vision to make India ‘ek Bharat, shreshtha Bharat’.

This is a huge personal pleasure for me as a admirer of this great personality, since I had written some 5yrs ago, arguing for Narendra Modi as Prime Minister.

 

A prayer for Mr. Narendra Modi.

Arindam Bandyopadhyay, MD

Congratulations, Mr. Narendra Modi, for your stupendous success in the 2014 Loksabha election.

You have been chosen by the Almighty to lead India. The 1.25 billion people of India have participated in a democratic revolution, the largest in the history of mankind, to give you the unequivocal mandate. They have come forward, shedding their glooms and grievances, with the great hope and aspiration that achche din aane waley hai.

We are aware that the road ahead is not going to be easy. You have been successful, through work more than words, in instilling a sense of belief and confidence. Still a billion plus people will likely have an equal measure of expectations and some are bound to be disappointed for various reasons. There would definitely be other distractions. Your opponents, politically or otherwise motivated, though temporarily numbed by the election results, will make every effort for a comeback. You will still continue to be under the microscope and every action or word of yours will still be analyzed for any possible aberration. The sinking secularist will keep on clutching to the debate of secularism vs. communalism because that is their sole straw of survival. The news-traders will continue their tirade at every opportune moment. Moreover of the more radical elements, some would still prefer to stop you at any cost while others will continue to consider you as their ‘target number one’.

You have to overcome all these and many more. Our well wishes are with you.

May you remain focused in your vision for India first and restore her lost pride.

May you have the strength to reclaim India, her heritage and her tradition!

May Indians, under your leadership, restore the glory of their wavered, age-old civilization!

May you revive the sense of self-esteem and worthiness in every Indian’s life!

May India get the benefit of maximum governance, minimum government!

May you succeed in providing a transparent, positive and decisive administration!

May you remain unfazed in your resolution to eradicate the curse of discrimination and corruption from Indian life!

May you lead us to our swaraj again, through su-raaj and free us from the shackles of poverty and despair.

May you succeed in promoting development as a mass movement with your mantra of sabka saath, sabka vikas!

May all citizens feel uniformly Indian, irrespective of language, caste, region and religion!

May all Indians, enjoy the fruit of development for all and appeasement for none!

May true secularism, beyond gimmicks of iftar party and politics of skull caps, re-emerge and prevail!

May you guide Hindus to become better Hindus, Muslims to become better Muslims!

May India, as a country, stride into the 21st century, with the respect as a world power!

May the message of vasudhaiva kuṭumbakam, emanating from Bharat, attain its desired global acceptance!

We, the1.25 billion people of India, are with you.

May Parmatma bless you!

***

 

Modi Magic: Muslims love development politics

Pure Modi Magic! 

Psuedo -seculars must be grunting and sulking!

But the truth is even Muslims are tired of vote-bank politics and are embracing Modi brand of development politics!

Time to throw out the likes of Mamata, Mulayam, Nitish, Lallu and the Nehru-Gandhi clan lead Congress brigade.

Modi-vate the people to Modi-fy the nation.

Jai Hind!

 

Modi sweep: Muslim majority town elects all BJP candidates

 

 Ahmedabad, Feb 12: It was a straight fight and the BJP created history by winning all 27 seats of town municipality in Salaya, a Muslim-majority town in Dwarka district. Salaya is know for its mega power project and now it will be known for giving Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi another triumph in the development agenda.

Among BJP’s 27 candidates, 24 were Muslims while remaining three were Hindus including one Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidate.

The BJP’s sweep in a township comprising 90 percent Muslims will take wind of many pseudo-secular elements. Of the 27 seats spread over nine wards, BJP candidates won unopposed on four seats in state municipal elections. Voting for remaining 23 seats took place on Sunday (10th February) with Congress in straight fight with BJP. The Congress party candidates even lost deposit on three seats.

Salaya has been enjoying fruits of development with Essar Energy’s integrated energyc company establishing a power unit to generate 1200 mw. Salaya I is Essar Energy’s first coal fired power project and has been built at a total investment cost of US$1.1 billion. Most of the power produced will be sold to the Gujarat state electricity utility, GUVNL, under a long term contract. When all the units are commissioned, the project is expected to generate nearly 2000 mw power.

Salaya will also be getting a world-class marine infrastructure project with a state-of-the-art material handling facility. The bulk handling port will be capable of handling 20 MMTPA of cargo. The jetty is located in the Salaya Harbour, which is naturally protected by two islands – Kalubhar Tapu and Dhani Be.

Essar has been conducting various projects under its social development initiative in Salaya. To empower the local women, Essar Foundation runs a stitching centre in Salaya. The Foundation is supporting the stitching center by providing skills and creating new business opportunities. This will also provide the associated families with an alternative source of income, by establishing market linkages.

The stitching center at Salaya initially started as a small community program by the local Wagher Muslim Community Jamat, with the idea to provide skill development to the women without them having to leave their houses.

The center is also imparting the women several life skills such as basic literacy, personality development, accounts and business entrepreneurship.

OneIndia News

 

Time to Modi-fy India

Published in www.ivarta.com blog

Arindam Bandyopadhyay

Enough is enough.

India is sick and tired.

We are sick of lies and deceptions, of scams and cover-ups, of promises and failures, of vote bank and divisive politics, of nepotism and sycophancy.

We are tired of the bickering, pompous politicians and their ignoble associates, the dynastic rulers, the family business of politics and the scams and schemes they manage.

We are appalled by the directionless and disengaged government, awestruck by its leadership or the lack of it, disgusted with its indifference to the need of its citizenry and terrified by its indecisiveness on matters as basic as internal and external security

We are mocked as the mango people of the banana republic. We are made to believe that the country is for the privileged and the influential and the rest only entitled to crumbs. People of debatable backgrounds are pampered as celebrities and those with dubious motives are lauded as activists. Separatists who openly preach sedition get away with open threats and get rewarded with free coverage of their freedom of expression.

Lawlessness is the norm. Our ill-trained police forces are made a laughing stock on and off the screen. Their sacrifices hardly raise any eyebrow. Our security forces are rendered toothless by politician with vested interests. We are made to believe that court cases are supposed to stretch for decades, that justice can be brought or manipulated and that for special convicts, jails can be transformed into five star accommodations. 

Our media has long forgotten its role in nation building, too preoccupied with TRP ratings and sensationalism. Biased and partisan panelists are involved hand in gloves, in the decadence, oblivious of all their accountabilities and commitments.

Even after 65 years of independence, we have not been able to provide the very basic requirements like water, electricity or education to the vast majority of our population. Issues such as pollution, sanitation, health, nutrition and infrastructure are plaguing the country. Yet crores and crores of rupees are misappropriated or embezzled, by unholy nexuses of politicians and their collaborators. No wonder politics happens to be the surest and quickest way of getting rich in the country. And no surprise that India rank 85th on the Corruption Perception Index (CPI), out of 180 countries. It is shameful that even a Prime Minister could do little but lament that only 15 per cent of all funds actually reach the common man.

We are tired of being poor. We are tired of hearing about garibi hatao and poverty lines, of schemes that are supposed to benefit the aam aadmi but do not reach them, of promises to eradicate the parallel economy and of assurances to bring back black money, stashed away in foreign banks. We are ashamed that a third of the world’s poor belongs to India and over 40% of India falls below the international poverty line of US$ 1.25 a day (2005 World Bank statistics).

We are tired of being called a third world country.

We are sick of the chalta hai mentality.

We want to break the shackles of stagnation.

We want change.

We are restless. Our frustration and desperation is visible. We have shown that we are not afraid to come out on the streets with posters and candle lights, to face the batons and water cannons, as during the fight against corruption or the protest against atrocities affecting women.

We are the largest democracy of the world, with a median age of 25 years and with around 70 percent of the 1.2 billion people under the age of 40 years. The generation which has been exposed to the world through television and internet feel that they have the talent to compete with the rest of the world. We aspire to improve our lot, prove our excellence and write our destiny.

We just need a leader to facilitate and guide us.

We want a statesman, unquestionably a nationalist who puts India first, and can stand up for her without being intimidated by international pressure.

We want a person with integrity, who is not only incorruptible himself, but also does not permit others to indulge in corruption.

We want a decisive, bold, no-nonsense leader, an able administrator who gets acknowledged even by his sulking opponents.

We want a visionary who can raise hope and nurture them, who can not only talk about our dreams of nation- building and skill development but actually walk the talk, setting up institutions to encourage research and innovations.

We want a dreamer who can envisage development that includes all and leaves none behind, who can rise above divisive politics and beyond caste, creed and religion. 

We want a leader who raises hope in the minds of a large section of the population from all walks of life and earns rightful appreciation within and outside the country..

Finally we want someone who is a proven achiever, who remains unfazed despite malicious defamation by enemies and whose path of integrity and excellence is unperturbed by the deceit and fraud of lesser mortals..

Let us get that leader.

Let us Modi-fy India.

 

Muslims should disown the pseudosecular parties and its leaders.

Poor Shahid Siddiqui!  He thought he was doing a good job, hiding under cover of a journalist. At no point did his interview seem to facilitate Narendra Modi’s defense. In fact, every attempt was made to put Modi in uncomfortable position with dubious questions, tirelessly repeating the media created lies, most of which have already been evaluated extensively and put to rest by the Supreme court appointed SIT in recent past.

Mr Siddiqui must have thought that accolades must be on its way for putting Modi on the dissection table for the nth time. Alas!  That was not to be. He did not expect Modi to turn the table, stand his ground  and reiterate with further conviction, that what he had always stood for, despite the decade old heaps of lies and accusations. 

So now Mr Siddiqui finds himself thrown out of his party and isolated from the same folks from whom he perhaps expected the most approval. Certainly he himself cannot be blamed like the Deoband Chief Maulana Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi, who had to be removed from his post for his “non-secular” comments on Modi.

The pseudo seculars are alarmed and growing intolerant everyday. They wanted a gladiator’s fight – you either kill your enemy in the arena or we will kill you! 

The question is what does the Muslim population in general think.

Is it time to disown these pseudo-secular leaders and parties?

 

 

SP Disowns Shahid Siddiqui for Interview With Modi

PTI, Lucknow, July 28, 2012

 

The Samajwadi Party today distanced itself from Shahid Siddiqui, saying he is no longer a part of the party two days after his interview with Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi made waves.”The party wants to clarify that Siddiqui had left SP long back and joined BSP on whose ticket he contested Lok Sabha election from Bijnor,” party’s national general secretary and spokesman Ram Gopal Yadav said in a statement issued here.

He said that later Siddiqui joined the Rashtriya Lok Dal.

“Siddiqui is not a SP member and has nothing to do with the party,” Yadav said, asking the media not to project him as SP leader.

Yadav said terming Siddiqui as a SP leader was “outrightly wrong”.

Siddiqui, who is the editor of Urdu weekly Nai Duniya, had recently interview Modi in which the Gujarat Chief Minister had refused to apologise for the post-Godhra riots and instead said he would prefer to be hanged if found guilty.

In an image makeover exercise, Modi had said in the interview, “If my government had done this (post-Godhra riots), I should be hanged in public in such a way that it remains a lesson for the next 100 years so that nobody dares to do it (such a crime)”.

Siddqiqui was a SP MP before he joined the RLD only to rejoin the Samajwadi Party in January this year.

Ram Gopal Yadav said that Siddiqui may be interested in an alliance with Modi.

SP leader Azam Khan said, “In politics neither friendship nor enmity is permanent. But we can’t maintain friendship with a murderer like Narendra Modi. Modi is an enemy of humanity. I feel this is wrong. It is not right for a person like Modi to have been given an opportunity to give his opinion to a major Urdu daily.”

Reacting to the SP’s move to distance itself from Siddiqui, BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain said, “As a journalist it is not necessary to only publish the views of those you agree with. His paper won’t only publish news related to Mulayam Singh Yadav.

“As an editor, he has the right to interview whoever he wishes. However, it is an old habit of SP to alter their actions to cater to their votebank. How can you demand clarifications and not listen when answers are provided,” he said.

Gujarat BJP leader Yatin Oza said, “For the first time someone has asked Modi about his view. For this removing a senior member of the party is politics of minority appeasement and hypocrisy. This is an autocratic way of functioning. 

 

The Godhra 2002 lies: as clarified by Narendra Modi to SIT

Almost 10 years of relentless attack by political oppositions, bogus activists, bleeding heart pseudoliberals and pseudosecular Indian media and the result is a BIG ZERO.

Hope Modi can concentrate now on more worthwhile agenda.

 

Never asked police to allow Hindus to vent their anger

On the contrary, I had issued orders to maintain peace, communal harmony at any cost”

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi had told the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team — which is probing some of the gruesome carnages during the 2002 communal riots in the State — that he never issued any instructions to top police officers to allow Hindus to “vent their anger” against Muslims in the aftermath of the Godhra train carnage.

“It is a baseless allegation. On the contrary, I had given categorical and clear-cut instructions to maintain peace and communal harmony at any cost,” Mr. Modi had told SIT Investigating Officer A.K. Malhotra, who questioned him on March 27 and 28, 2010.

Classified document

The statement made by Mr. Modi before the SIT, which was the first and by far the only investigating agency to question him on the 2002 riots, was considered a classified document and formed part of the SIT report submitted before the Supreme Court. But surprisingly, on Thursday, the “signed statement” found a place on the website of a local Gujarati daily. How and who “leaked” Mr. Modi’s statement before the SIT was not known.

According to the statement, countersigned on every page by Mr. Modi on March 28, 2010, the investigating officer had put to him 71 questions and each of them was answered by Mr. Modi, rarely avoiding an answer, claiming “I do not remember.” The Chief Minister was questioned on almost the entire gamut of the riots, the decision to shift the bodies of the Godhra train carnage victims to Ahmedabad, the security arrangements made to meet the tense communal situation, deployment of the Army and his knowledge about the attacks on the minorities in Gulberg Society and Naroda-Patiya localities in Ahmedabad.

Mr. Modi had claimed that shifting of the bodies was a “collective decision” of the top police and administrative officers present in Godhra and was taken to defuse “building up of tension in Godhra.” He claimed that the Army was deployed in the affected areas without any delay and denied that the slain former Congress MP, Ehsan Jafri, had ever contacted him on phone before being killed in the Gulberg Society attack. The Chief Minister denied having any prior knowledge of the attacks on Gulberg Society or Naroda-Patiya. He also denied having asked the then Cabinet Ministers, Ashok Bhatt and I.K. Jadeja, to sit in the Ahmedabad city and State police control rooms and interfere with the functioning of the police on the “Gujarat Bandh” day, February 28, 2002.

Mr. Modi refuted the allegations that he was in “constant touch” with some of the leaders of the BJP and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, who were later registered as accused in the riots, and denied that the controversial Gujarat cadre IPS officer, Sanjiv Bhatt — who created a flutter later by filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court against the Chief Minister — was present on the crucial law and order meeting at his official residence in Gandhinagar on the night of February 27, 2002, during which he was alleged to have “instructed” the police officers to “allow Hindus to vent their anger.”

Mr. Modi denied that his first reaction to the Godhra train carnage was to declare it a “pre-planned conspiracy,” but admitted that after visiting the site and talking to the police and administrative officials as well as those present at the Godhra railway station who were witnesses to the incident and the injured passengers of the ill-fated coach, he did tell the media in Godhra that the incident “appeared to be a pre-planned conspiracy.” But he had also added that nothing could be said with finality until the investigation was completed. The Chief Minister also denied having ever talked about “Pakistani spy agency ISI’s hand” behind the conspiracy.

Asked about the crucial February 27, 2002 meeting, Mr. Modi had said among those present were the then acting Chief Secretary, Swarna Kanta Varma; the then Additional Chief Secretary (Home), Ashok Narayan; the then Home Secretary, K. Nityanandam; the then Director-General of Police, K. Chakravarthi; Ahmedabad Police Commissioner P.C. Pande; and two senior officials of the CMO, P.K. Mishra and Anil Mukim. “As far as I recollect, the then Additional DGP [Intelligence], G.C. Raigar, was not present. Mr. Sanjiv Bhatt, the then Deputy Commissioner [Intelligence], did not attend as this was a high-level meeting. None of my Cabinet colleagues was present in the said meeting.”

At the meeting, the Chief Minister said he shared information with the officers about his visit to Godhra and the officers briefed him about the precautionary measures being taken by them.

The Chief Minister denied that the State Intelligence Branch (SIB) had given any information about the movement of VHP kar sevaks to and fro from Ayodhya and said if there was any such information, it must be with the departments concerned. On being informed about the train carnage by about 9 a.m. on February 27, he had issued directions that necessary steps be taken to ensure that other passengers were not held up as it could lead to tension and imposition of curfew in Godhra immediately since it was a communally sensitive place.

The Chief Minister said that after reaching Godhra in the evening the same day — after the day’s session of the Assembly was over — he visited the spot and other places and later held a meeting with the government and police officers at the District Collector’s office where a “collective decision” was taken by all present to shift the charred bodies of the victims to Ahmedabad in view of the mounting tension in Godhra. Mr. Modi said the decision was taken because of the knowledge that most of the victims belonged to Ahmedabad or other places beyond Ahmedabad and that their relatives need not go to Godhra for identification and claiming the bodies as Godhra then was under curfew. He also denied that the then District Collector, Jayanti Ravi, had opposed the decision and, on the contrary, she was insistent that the bodies be moved away from Godhra to ease the tension. He also denied that the bodies were handed over to VHP leader Jaydeep Patel as was claimed later. Mr. Modi maintained that the bodies were in the custody of the district administration.

Mr. Modi denied that he had ever given any interview to The Times of India advocating the famous theory of “every action has its reaction.” The newspaper was forced to carry the denial but it was published in an obscure corner and the allegation was repeated against him time and again. He also denied the allegations purportedly made against him by some BJP and VHP leaders in a “so-called sting operation” by the Tehelka Magazine.

The Chief Minister also refuted the allegations made by the retired Additional DGP, R.B. Shreekumar, in affidavits filed before the G.T. Nanavati-Akshay Mehta judicial inquiry commission that his (Mr. Modi’s) officers were trying to influence the retired officer to file false affidavits in favour of the government.

On the petition filed by Zakia Jafri, wife of the slain Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, in the Supreme Court, Mr. Modi said her charges “deserved to dismissed completely and such false and frivolous complaints should not be entertained.”

 

Are Muslims cozying up to Modi.

Reading between the lines, are Muslim organizations in India changing their stance towards Narendra Modi (just in case he does end up becoming a more important person in the lives of Indians, beyond Gujarat)?

Are Muslims finally able to see through the ill-effects of vote bank politics, that most political parties of India have catered to them as minorities, ever since Independence?

For too long, the “Muslim victimhood” sentiment has been projected and propagated by political parties and their leaders for vested interest. Likewise, the fire of the post- Godhra riots of 2002, has been carefully kept burning with periodic fueling by these Modi-haters including the overtly partisan Indian print and news media.

The fact, as per the Parliamentary statement of the former Congress Union Minister of State for Home, that 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus were killed in the riots does not quite reveal a picture of Muslim genocide or pogrom as Modi-haters have tried to paint. Similarly, the fact that “126 persons were killed in police firing, of which 77 were Hindus”, according to the National Minorities Commission Chairman, John Joseph, also does not bear testimony to an alleged religiously biased police force, supposingly rendered inactive by orders of the CM to ‘let Hindus vent their anger’, as accused by so called whistleblower supercop, Sanjeev Bhatt. Investigations and court cases are still going on, but nefarious designs of bogus activists and vindictive opponents are getting exposed, eroding the credibility of the anti-Modi brigade. 

In the meantime in Gujarat, Muslims are reported to be drifting towards Modi and his party. “A stage has now been reached where the development oriented initiatives of Narendra Modi are drawing the Muslim community towards the party“, claimed Babi Sama,  who is the first Muslim woman to be elected on BJP ticket in the Municipal corporation elections in 2010.  Muslims have increasingly voted in favour of BJP  in those Gujarat elections as they also did in Bihar, a BJP alliance ruled state.

Muslims in Gujarat are reportedly joining the mainstream to be part of developmental politics, overcoming the years of anti-Modi rhetorics heaped upon them. And the message is spreading beyond Gujarat. The acknowledgement came earlier from former Deoband chief Vastanvi (though he had to pay a price for that).

Perhaps now others are also recognizing that nurturing the perceived victimhood image, hankering for privileges or heeding to appeasement policies has done more harm to the Muslim community over the decades.  Just as a reform in education is needed so also is a reform in mental attitude.

A demand for apology from Modi for a alleged crime that is still sub judice may thus actually be an face-saving attempt of cozying up.

 

Will accept Modi if he apologises: UP Muslims

Moradabad: Ahead of UP elections next year, Sunni Sufi Muslims have come under an umbrella to back reforms in madarsa system of education. The group which claims to have support of over 80 per cent of Muslims in India oppose deoband system of education calling it regressive.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi was on a token fast for peace and harmony in Dwarka in Gujarat on Monday and over thousand kilometers away in Moradabad in west UP, a section of Muslims coming together to make themselves heard. What’s the connection between the two?

Sunni Sufi Muslims have come under an umbrella to back reforms in madarsa system of education. All India Ulema and Mashaikh Board, which claims to have support of over 80 per cent of Muslims in India oppose deoband system of education calling it regressive.

President All India Ulema and Mashaikh Board said, “Sufi Muslims can conditionally accept Narendra Modi. If he says what happened was a mistake and would never happen again. Anybody who is ready to apologise, we will be soft on them.”

Deoband’s chief cleric Ghulam Mohammed Vastanvi was the last prominent Muslim who dared to come out in praise of Modi and he had to pay a heavy price, being forced to retract his statement, the over lakh Sufi Sunni Muslims who gathered here are aware of just how difficult it is to position themselves as in a liberal sense.

Ulema and Mashaikh Board say that the Sunni Sufi Muslims form nearly 80 per cent of the total Muslim population of India. Renouncing the deoband system of madarsa education as regressive, the Sufis say that wahabis in India promote views that poison young Muslim minds.

Distancing themselves from the hardliners within the community, the group with a sizeable support of Muslims favours reforms in madarsas.

With an attempt to redefine the agenda for Muslims, and the road ahead, this gathering with its eye on UP elections next year made it clear they cannot be treated as a single block of vote bank anymore. 

 

Why is Teesta Setalvaad still roaming free?

Why is this woman still not behind bars?  Are activists and NGO’s beyond the law?

How come the media still pampers her and dances to her tunes?

Is ‘narco tests’ only reserved for alleged ‘Hindu Terrorists’ ?

What if it is true that ‘nine were awarded life term’ based on her false  testimony? Is that not enough for Manmohan Singh to spent sleepless nights?

Best Bakery case: Teesta’s former aide demands retrial

October 13, 2011 14:30 IST

A former aide of activist Teesta Setalvad has moved the Bombay high court seeking retrial of the 2002 Best Bakery case alleging that the latter not only fabricated evidence and falsely implicated innocent persons but also “managed” the witnesses.

Rais Khan Aziz Khan Pathan, in an affidavit, urged the high court to direct an appropriate court in Mumbai to conduct retrial of the case and record his evidence.

Khan, former coordinator of the Citizen for Justice and Peace, the Mumbai-based non-government organisation headed by Teesta, requested that notice be served on Teesta to explain her conduct and clarify allegations of fabricating evidence in the case.

Khan even demanded lie detector and polygraph tests on himself and Teesta to “bring out the truth”.

The affidavit assumes significance as in April 2011, Shaikh Yasmeen Banu, a key prosecution witness in the case, had also filed an affidavit in the high court alleging she was “lured and misguided” by Teesta into giving false testimony against the 17 accused, of which nine were awarded life term by a Mumbai court.

Fourteen people who had taken refuge in the Best Bakery owned by the Shaikh family in Vadodara in Gujarat were killed by a mob on March 1, 2002, during the post-Godhra riots.

The appeals filed by the nine convicts in the sensational case are pending in the Bombay high court. Khan contended that on instructions of Teesta, he had in the past met Yasmeen in Baroda and requested her to shift to Mumbai where the retrial of the case was in progress.    

Yasmeen in her affidavit had accused Khan of cheating her and other witnesses for personal gains, which was denied by him.

Khan contended that he used to get funds from Teesta to organise press conferences for riot victims and meet relevant expenses. He alleged that getting payment for the victims was never Teesta’s priority as she was only concerned to ensure that the witnesses get money.

“While witnesses used to get Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh, the victims were getting only Rs 5,000 (by Teesta),” Khan said. He further stated in the affidavit that he was put up at Sagar Hotel in the Nagpada area of South Mumbai by Teesta for eight months when the trial of Best Bakery case was in progress and was directed by her to keep a close watch on the witnesses.

“After the court issued summons to witnesses, she (Teesta) asked me to bring all of them to Mumbai even before police approached them”, he said.

“Throughout the trial, witnesses were paid Rs 100 a day and the payment was made to them every weekly. Although the court order was to keep witnesses at Vasava Government Hostel in Worli, they were kept at Mariam apartment in Bhindi Bazaar”.

“Neither the police nor the prosecutor ever inquired or asked how these witnesses were so punctually coming to the court for deposition and who is funding their expenses,” he added.

It was stated further in the affidavit that police used to escort every witness to the court and back to the police guesthouse in Worli and during this period nobody was allowed to meet or speak to them.

“As per Teesta’s instructions, I used to provide a mobile phone to each witness so that she can be in touch with them and guide them during their stay in Mumbai,” he said.

“When the Gujarat police were searching for prime witness Zahira Shaikh, Teesta directed me over phone to reach an address in the Alkapuri area of Baroda. When I went there I found she was at a residence of a Muslim woman journalist working with a national daily,” Khan said, adding “Muslim reporters were roped in sentimentally”.

Khan said he had learnt that some of the victims and witnesses like Yasmeen had recently retracted from their earlier statements or affidavits prepared by Teesta’s organisation and that they blamed him for cheating and manipulation.

“These witnesses have put me in a very awkward position and I am afraid that I might be prosecuted by the court for helping the witnesses to give false deposition in the court, which was actually not done by me at all”, he added. out of total 73 witnesses, including Zaheera Shaikh, had turned hostile, saying they had seen nothing the night of the attack.

In February 2006, a Mumbai court had awarded lifer to the nine accused.

Zaheera and other witnesses who had turned hostile were later convicted for perjury.

 

Narendra Modi – the person

It is rare to read anything about Narendra Modi without the taint of the Gujarat Riots, especially from the English media of India. 

Recently Modi has been in the news for various reasons. 

First came the Supreme Court’s declaration of ‘NOT OUT’ on the appeal for his complicity in the Gujarat Riots.

This was followed by the report of the US Congressional Research Service (CRS) on India claiming  that Modi has much more potentiality than Congress’ Rahul Gandhi to become the next Prime Minister of the country

Then came his Sadbhavna Mission, which received widespread coverage in the media (may be more negative than positive, but still the media’s hype was noticeable), perhaps  overwhelming even some of the BJP leaders and obviously much to the frustration of the ruling Congress party.

The topic of  “Modi as Prime Minister” is again being discussed in the media (albeit with best efforts to add the appropriate twists and turns) and echoed in the political circles. 

Furthermore, the timing of the declaration of L.K. Advani about his own withdrawal from the PM race adds a different significance.

All in all, it does seem appropriate to start learning about Modi the person. But no one expects the initiative to be taken by NDTV, widely percieved, along with CNN-IBN, to be shamelessly biased, politically towards Congress.

Hence this one, published in NDTV,  is a genuine surprise. Perhaps it is not too early to say that the English Media is at least slightly confused and is preparing to change its gears and directions ……. may be in fear or anticipation  …….. of upcoming changing times. 

 

 

Narendra Modi on politics, poetry and Rahul Gandhi as PM

Sept 16, 2011

This interview is from Society magazine; its views do not necessarily reflect those of NDTV.

Meeting Narendra Modi was like meeting multiple personalities at one time. I have always perceived Modi as a man of steel having gone through fire. The constant picking and media barbs have not left him embittered. This could be attributed to his strong and courageous personality and being centred in spirituality.

Modi is the only CEO Chief Minister so-to-say who has corporatised political administration in his well groomed and well kept state! As I proceeded to Modi’s residence for a chat, en route, the typical attributes associated with a politician were all missing. No hangers-on, no party flags or king size cut outs, no party men shouting slogans while lounging around and awaiting a darshan of their party honcho, and no desperate security frisking. One enters a ‘peace zone’ of sorts when you step into his home surrounded by well manicured lawns.

As I was ushered into his neatly laid out home cum office, I saw Vivekananda’s bronze figurine tucked in the corner of his work station. The freewheeling tete-a-tete that followed gave an astonishing insight into the man, the mystic and the leader, rather than the controversial politician that Modi is made out to be. My initial apprehension, going by his public image of a darting and intimidating person, was put to rest at the very outset. Modi seemed cheerful, gentle and benign. There was no attempt to overpower and manipulate my thoughts, no overtones or undercurrents. Modi exuded brilliant command over the session, was clearly defined in his approach and was never caught off guard.

“I make political statements only before elections. There is much more to talk about than my political opponents,” he quips. We agree. Here is a man who has become synonymous with dedicated hard work and administrative genius so much so that he is the only politician for whom a temple is built by his people. His state shines luminously as a model city. No doubt there are still issues to be addressed in the vast canvas, but Gujarat most certainly has filed past other states in showing an all round progress-industrialisation, infrastructure, tourism and a total turnaround.

The architect of this new and shining Gujarat, Narendra Modi, is surely someone you will either adore or despise but certainly won’t ignore. His political strategies that raised him from being a party worker to the Chief Minister for three terms in succession field him as a strong potential Prime Ministerial candidate from amongst the rest of the regional leadership. The writing on the wall is clear that if the nation chooses to vote out the Congress, Modi is the first choice of the people.

With the grim scenario that the nation faces today, the need of the hour is an able administrator who can fix the fractures within our system. Today, regional leaders like Narendra Modi, Ashok Gahlot, Sheila Dikshit and Nitish Kumar are in the public discernment as the ideal options for replacing their national counterparts at the helm.

With a proven track record of excellent governance in his kitty, Modi chooses to play the cards about his national political agenda only when the time is ripe. Among the disadvantages Modi faces is his love-hate equation with the media. And so, here was an opportunity to peel the stern communalistic facade, and peep into the man behind the iron curtain. Is he as blunt and intimidating as he seems from a distance? As ruthless as he is made out to be? As communal minded as he is perceived? What is his typical day like? Does Modi like to watch TV soaps and sob with them? When did he last take a holiday and where does he really like to unwind? Many such questions flooded my thoughts and my research furnished no insight into the man that Modi is. His political track record reveals him as an uncompromising and shrewd politician. Besides, the magnificent transformation he achieved in the eyes of his own people, from being an anti-hero to a hero, is a case study in itself. To the people of Gujarat, Modibhai, as he is fondly addressed as, is like no one else. They view him as a brilliant politician, an efficient administrator, an able strategist and ultimately, a competent leader who has staked all his might in serving his people. Indeed, all this and more is supported by the progress that Gujarat has recorded as a model state in the country with maximum NRI investment and all around growth. The accent is on ‘systematic, non-corrupt and good governance’ rather than mere tactics for political survival.

Modi is a proud man who can flaunt his report card and by quizzing him to talk about his state, you have turned him on, so to say! “In Gujarat’s model of governance, we have moved out of the traditional piecemeal actions and knee-jerk reactions. We now look at a whole new approach to the fundamental changes that would yield qualitative and quantitative leaps. My role is that of a facilitator and the real credit goes to Team Gujarat and the people of the state,” preens Modi. However, history can’t be recalled without associations of landmark events to fundamental authors. Like Gandhi and the freedom fight, Nehru and the Kashmir goof-up, Sardar Patel’s police action in the Razaka movement of the Nizam State, Indira Gandhi and the Emergency, and when it comes to Modi, you cannot finish the breath without remembering the infamous Gujarat riots.

Though the riots will continue to haunt Modi, he has made a conscious effort to heal the wounds and has worked in a sustained way to make the media take note of the immense progress made in the land of the Mahatma. His image as the ‘merchant of death’ is reversed to that of the ‘Sultan of good governance’. As shrewd and emphatic as Chanakya in his political arbitration and in the stringency of administrative competence, Modi is aligned in the league of the legendary Gujarat leader, Saradar Vallabh Bhai Patel.

However, Modi’s modesty is outraged at the comparison with the legend and he springs up in protest. “It is unfair to compare anyone with Sardar Patel. He was a great stalwart. We are lucky that his soul is there to inspire us. He was an iron man because he stood by his commitment to his ideology and thoughts. Even in the face of opposition to his stand, he never succumbed. No toothless ruler can rule the country,” he interrupts your thoughts.

Going to office is a rather academic activity for Narendra Modi. He has drawn a definite blue print for his people and his personal political agenda. His hours spent in the office are channeled towards proactive administration rather than for political sustenance, Probably, Modi feels best when he talks about his innovative governance, and his schemes are no mere eyewash. Looking closely, his schemes are universal in nature, not to be constricted by boundaries either. An offspring of a middle class family in Vadnagar in Mehsana district of north Gujarat where Modi completed his schooling, he was conferred his PG in Political Science from the Gujarat University. As a young man, he joined the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), a student wing and was involved in the anti-corruption Nav Nirman Movement. After working as a full time organiser there, he was later nominated as its representative in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The upward climb had no stopping. But, amidst all the sound and fury, wouldn’t we like to know how his growing up years impacted Modi as a person? “I am just an aam admi, a common man. I live and think like a common man despite the trappings of power. My family background was very humble. My growing up was also nothing extraordinary. There were no unusual aspects to my life to have made me blossom into someone special. Neither my mother nor my father was the sarpanch of any village. It was a bewilderment to even know what it was like to be a Panchayat member. So, whatever is attributed to an ordinary man is applicable to me. I am happy with the small mercies of life. Even if a child tells me, ‘Uncle, you have done a good job,’ I feel joyous. And, the endeavour is to not do anything wrong so that you could be centred in joy,” proffers Modi. Modi likes to believe that he is driven by the will of God when he says, “I had not shown any temperament to be in mainstream politics in my growing years. Even now, administration within the government framework is an absolutely apolitical activity for me. I hardly spare one or two hours in a month for political activities. I am totally dedicated to my job. I don’t see this office as a political one. While you are elected to work, there should be no politics at all. If there is politics, it means you are a failure. You are not a Chief Minister for those who have voted for you but for those who have not voted for you.”

Usually, the day begins early for Modi. “I have been an early riser since the beginning. My initial life demanded labour and effort for survival, so I am very hard working by nature. I would toil more than my peers. Be it sports, theatre activities or even reading a book, I would feel I should read faster and more books than the others. Lazing around is not in my nature. Even today, I don’t avail a Sunday. I remember when I was a child, during the India-China war, 50 kilometres from my village; there was a railway junction from where the army was dispersing aid to the war field. I accompanied some young men who went there to serve tea and snacks and give a pep talk to boost the soldiers’ spirits. I didn’t know what exactly this whole act was about, but I was there,” recalls Modi.

A strong national fervour was bound to be embedded with such an exposure at such a tender age, and it sure did. Modi embarked on a political pathway with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and as a swayamsevak, he had to go underground during the Emergency declared by the then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi. He joined the BJP in early 1987. “I helped maintain relations between the RSS and the BJP. In 1988, I was recognised as a master strategist of the party and was entrusted with the post of General Secretary of the Gujarat State BJP unit. Between 1988 and 1995, I successfully carried out two major projects of the BJP initiated by LK Advani-the Ayodhya Rath Yatra and the march from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. In 1995, I became the National Secretary of the party with the charge of five major states. In1995, the BJP came to power with a two thirds majority in the Gujarat Assembly. Since then, Gujarat is under the rule of the BJP. In 1995, I was promoted to the post of General Secretary (Organisation) of the BJP. I held the office till October 2001 and then became the 14th Chief Minister of Gujarat,” writes Modi in his introduction on Facebook.

“Being in the RSS, I got a chance to work at every level of the organisation, which helped me in building my character. Basically, I am not built only for politics. I am an ardent lover of nature. My interest is mainly culture and character building. Now, political instability has becomes a part of politics. You need diligence and commitment to succeed in politics,” says Modi. An avid reader, biographies of great men catch his fancy apart from philosophical books, and he unwinds by reading and writing poetry. “Poetry which had something to say about life and its varied facets used to captivate me. Now, I just flip the pages as that phase of my life is over. But, I have published my poems and the beauteous nature has always been my muse, my inspiration. I am a big environment buff and even in my own state, a lot has been done to protect and nurture the environment,” he muses.

Recalling his growing years, Modi says, “From a very young age, I have been writing books and I also wrote columns with pseudo names. During the Emergency, I used to run a newspaper, called Satya Samachar. I was barely 20 plus then and during that time, I would unearth whatever was censored, publish them and distribute copies as an awareness campaign. The government had also issued a warrant in my name. Recently, I wrote a book on the environment, titled, Convenient Action, which was launched by Abdul Kalam. It is about various environment problems and solutions and Gujarat practices all of them.”

Modi the Mystic

Modi revealed in a television programme that he lived in the caves of the Himalayas for four years before he made his foray into public life. To retain one’s composure on the face of a storm reveals one’s inner spiritual strength. “A stress buster is needed for the one who feels stress. For the one who has authored his life with detachment, where is the question of stress? I am a totally detached person. I am here, but I don’t feel I am a Chief Minister. I am a CM only when I sign on the dotted line. Even that is because someone has to take the responsibility,” he says emphatically.

Not one of the temple going politicians who always look to the almighty for solutions to problems of their own making, Modi says, “I am not religious. I go to the temple on the Gujarat New Year day. I can’t claim to be spiritual because it’s a very profound epithet. But, I like it when I get to read or hear anything related to the spiritual world. I have been practicing yoga and meditation for many years. Detachment is something I believe in practising for my spiritual self. In fact, with great difficulty, I have torn myself away from pursuing mendicancy in totality to be a part of this world. The call of the Himalayas has been put on the back burner. When the time is right, it is like crossing from one room to the other for me. You will be surprised to know that despite having lived in this house for 10 years now, until of late, I didn’t even know how the entire house looked. I only used spaces like my office, bedroom, dining room and the study. Only when recently there was a move to relocate my library did I take a tour of the rest of the building. That is what I mean by detachment. And, what makes me angry? That’s the problem. I don’t get angry, but have to enact anger in order to get work done.” (Laughs)

So, where does spiritually and politics bifurcate? “There is a problem only when they bifurcate. They should not be cut off. Gandhi was immersed in spirituality all his life and it is this spirituality that inspired him to serve the society. This inspiration sustains because it is a power. This is where we are erring,” he pontificates.

Moments to Cherish

Modi lives his life purely with an agenda for his people with no personal strings attached. However, were there any moments he stole for personal gratification amidst the dust and din of politics and work? He recollects, “After being the CM for two consecutive terms, I had two desires. One was to unearth my childhood friends with whom I had completely lost touch. One day, I sat up and listed all the names I could remember. I remembered them all but had lost track of their whereabouts. Some 35 names popped up. I wanted to invite them to the Chief Minister’s residence and share my childhood with them and also because I wanted to remind myself about the real Modi lest I lose sight of him. So, I spent time with my friends getting down-to-earth. They too felt that if I remembered and spent time with them after having reached where I have then I must be fine. So, that was my test. The other desire was to get together all the teachers in my lifetime and honour them. One of them was 93-years-old. I invited them here and organised a big function to honour them. It gave me immense happiness that I was able to honour and say thanks to those who have contributed their might in shaping me. So, I fulfilled both my desires and I am happy about it.”

Contributory Influences

An ardent bachelor, one hardly hears about Modi’s family. “On my birthday, I go home to visit my mother and spend a few minutes with her. That’s my only contact with my family. I left home when I was 17. And, I went back after 35 years. I left home in order to serve the society and the country. Then, I was drifting to different destinations and landed as the CM. I eat simple food-khichdi, chapatis, kadhi and stuff like that. I am a 100 per cent vegetarian,” he says.

“As a 13-year-old, I used to read Vivekananda. I don’t have a political background. I hadn’t seen the Chief Minister’s chambers before I became one. I had not seen the Assembly before I became an MLA. I didn’t know how a government functioned. I didn’t know anything. I was fortunate to physically visit more than 400 districts where I stayed overnight. That’s why I am conversant with the problems of Hindustan. Probably, amongst all the politicians, I have visited the maximum number of villages. I have visited more than 50 per cent of the state and for 35 years, I was only travelling all over. This has given me a lot of strength. This contributed to my vision for the state and has translated into the progress of the state in all sectors. The other thing is my temperament to write, and to think out of the box is my innate nature,” stakes Modi.

Pro Hindutva

Branded as the messiah and ambassador of Hindutva, Modi has had much at stake due to the image. However, he vindicates his core philosophy in his inimitable rhetoric. With a stern voice, he says, “The government’s work is to function in accordance to the constitution. I am committed to the constitution of India. Being a Chief Minister, I have to follow the word and spirit of what the constitution states. If I say violence is bad, what is wrong in it? If I believe that we must love nature, what is wrong? If I say, serve the poor, what is wrong in it? If I say, sarva pantha samabhav-no discrimination of religion-what is wrong in it? And, if this philosophy is called Hindutva then why should one feel shy?”

The Bachchan Factor

Even as Modi’s Hindutva has triggered controversy, there was a hullaballoo over the choice of the Big B as the brand ambassador of Gujarat. Unflustered, Modi simplifies the entire saga, “I was taking up the promotion of tourism in the state. Gujaratis are the best tourists but Gujarat was never a tourist destination. I wanted to change this because all the elements needed for exotic tourism are inherent here. So, someone had to do something. Around the time I picked up this campaign seriously, Amitabh Bachchan came to me as he wanted me to watch his film Paa. I liked the film. Then, we got chatting and he said I could count on him if at all there was anything he could do for me. I have no personal needs, but it occurred to me that if he could do something for Gujarat, I would be happy. He said he had only his voice and his face as his fortune. I immediately asked him if he would promote our tourism. He willingly agreed to do so and what’s more, he does not charge us a single rupee and has always given as much time as we required for the shoots without even once shifting or cancelling a schedule. This is sheer service to the state. What more can I ask for when someone gives so much love to my state? I repeatedly express my thanks to him.”

Genesis of Controversy

The ghost of the 2002 riots haunts Modi as a convenient silencer and a political weapon. To Modi, it is a dream to find a benign press that would put the past behind and pat him for his good deeds. So, being the blue eyed boy of the media is indeed on Modi’s wish list. The media, Modi feels, keeps scratching the wounds of the riots, not allowing them to heal despite the dramatic amendments he has made. “It would be good if I were liked by the media world,” he rues.

Personal and Political Philosophy

Political commentators feel that the veteran politician has all the exposure and experience it takes to shoulder the responsibility at the helm of the country with ease, if given a chance. Does he not see himself playing a bigger role in national politics? “For me, any remote villager from Hindustan, even if he is repairing shoes, is doing national work. Even if a small individual averts an impending accident, it is a service to the nation. I don’t believe that it’s only by holding certain posts that you can serve the nation. Even now, whatever, I am doing is service to the nation. It does not matter from where and how you do it. It is a media created trend that if any Chief Minister does good work, he has to be spoken about being fit to be the next PM. We have seen this happen in the case of Chandrababu Naidu, Karunanidhi, Sharad Pawar, ND Tiwari, and others. It is a very big club but I don’t want to become a member of that club. To me, as Raja Ranthidev said, ‘Neither do I desire to rule nor do I desire liberation or rebirth. If I do have any desire, it is to wipe the tears of the poor.’ That was the philosophy of our country. What better inspiration can we have than this? Whatever work is entrusted to us, the benefit must reach the last person in the periphery,” he says crystal clear in his thoughts.

National Politics

While the media is going hammer and tongs about the suitability of Rahul Gandhi to take over the leadership of the nation and Rahul himself making inroads at the grassroot levels to entrench his presence, Modi’s take on the situation is of everyone’s interest. “Well, I don’t want to discuss this. One has to first explore where the grassroot is. As for Rahul Gandhi having the makings of a national leader, analyse the ingredients needed for that first. It is not my job to analyse anyone. Everyone works in his own way. The country is watching the centre’s performance. The Prime Minister himself stated that he has problems and that he is constrained. After this, there is no need for any editorial debates about their performance. He has confessed he has his limitations,” he sums up.

Keeping Terror At Bay

One of the major achievements of the Modi government is its success at keeping terror at bay even though the state shares a boundary with Pakistan. Even as the Al Qaeda has administered a threat letter to Modi, he refuses to lend terrorism any religious association. He explains, “It is not in good taste to associate terrorism with any religion. Terrorism has no religion and you cannot associate it with humanity. Someone who is human can’t be a terrorist. Only the one who ceases to be a human being becomes a terrorist.”

Success Mantra

“Success is a relative term. By and large, success is measured in comparison with someone else’s. I feel success is something that satisfies your inner conscience and tells you that you have done the right thing. Success should not be measured on a scale. If I can please a person by some gesture then I have found success,” Modi believes.

Personal Style

Modi has authored his own style statement that is now world renowned. “Well, when I was travelling extensively, I used to take a small bag and keep all my stuff in it. I used to then wash my own clothes. So, just as a space-saving and soap economising measure, I used to chop away the long sleeves of my kurtas. That’s how the half sleeve kurta became my style statement. You can find the Modi kurta even in London and New York and also in our own Khadi Bhandar,” says he blushing.

Network

Twitter and Facebook are now public forums and no surprise that Modi is present there. How net savvy is the Gujarat Chief Minister? “The communication revolution has set in and there is nothing wrong in using these mediums. I am an avid user of Twitter, I use Facebook, I send emails, I keenly keep track of how this medium is developing. In this age, information is power and through social networking, you can get and disseminate information fast. I believe in keeping communication with people alive. There are rarely any calls I don’t return or mails I don’t respond to. I surf the net and read the newspaper early morning over a cup of beverage, listening to my morning ragas,” he says.

Leaving FootPrints

All those who have achieved prominent public presence nurture the desire to be immortalised for their deeds. Modi has made service his axiom. How would he like to be remembered in posterity? “I should be able to serve the poor even more. Why should I be remembered? Why should I have such a dream? I am not an idealist. You behold the Ajantha Ellora caves. They are immortal. Does anyone know who created them? So, my philosophy is, we have been given a mission, we need to finish it before we quit. As far as the work is remembered, it’s still acceptable, but what is the need to remember the person behind it? I don’t even have the stature to give a message to anyone. I am a very small person. I don’t have the right. But, I love this country and its people and I give them the assurance that whatever task I am entrusted with, I will never spare any effort to fulfill it. I will work as hard as I can.”

Men of steel are rare to find and here is one, self made. It’s time we saw Modi in a new light-as a catalyst of change and growth. Though he insists he doesn’t harbour great political ambitions, only time will tell if this iron man of Gujarat gets the opportunity to rule the Delhi darbar. 

 

Narendra Modi not out, rules Supreme Court

Opponents sulk but cannot hide their disappoinment. The ‘maut ka saudagar’ has beaten them again ….

God is great, tweets Modi after Supreme Court verdict

New Delhi, Sep 12 (IANS) Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Monday thanked god after the Supreme Court verdict directing a trial court to hear a petition against him in the killing of former MP Ehsan Jafri in the 2002 riots.

“God is great,” Modi tweeted on the microblogging site Twitter.

The apex court order came after a petition filed by Zakia Jafri, the widow of Ehasan Jafri, urging a probe into Modi’s role in the Gulberg society carnage and the trial of the case by a special court outside the state.

BJP leader Sushma Swaraj congratulated Modi, saying truth has won.

“Narendrabhai has passed Agnipareeksha today. My heartiest congraulations to him. Satyameva jayate. Varshon baad aaj satya ki vijay hui,” she tweeted.