In a candid interview to a popular local Urdu weekly, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has affirmed that he should be hanged if found guily in the 2002 communal riots.
The interview, which was published on the cover-page of the Urdu weekly Nai Duniya, was conducted by Shahid Siddiqui, the editor and a former Rajya Sabha MP from the Samajwadi Party. Rediff.com has a recording of this interview in its possession.
...
'If I am guilty than I deserve no mercy'
Photographs: Reuters
The interview runs into six pages and covers post-Godhra riots, the state of Muslims in Gujarat and other sensitive issues.
"There is no question of apologising for the riots. Because If I am guilty than I deserve no mercy," Modi is reported to be saying in the interview.
The Modi govt has been accused of inaction
Image: Young Muslims hold placards denouncing Gujarat state chief minister Narendra Modi during a peace march in AhmedabadPhotographs: Amit Dave/Reuters
Siddiqui said he decided to interview the Gujarat CM after a meeting in Mumbai with known Modi critics Mahesh Bhatt and Salim Khan. The duo suggested that dialogue can be a way to resolve issue, following which Siddiqui sent a request to Modi's office.
The Modi government has been accused of not taking action when rioters ran amok in the state killing thousands of people.
TOP photo features of the week
...
article