Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to ANI about the 2002 Gujarat riots and the impact of the judicial process on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "I have closely seen Modiji enduring this pain, facing the allegations despite being on the side of truth," he said. "Since the judicial process was under way, he did not speak. Only a man with a strong heart can do this."
When asked about the BJP’s model of forming a government in Gujarat without Muslim votes, which was termed the 'Gujarat Experiment' by the Opposition, the home minister said: "It is all about perspective. Gujarat is indeed a model. It has a near 0 per cent dropout rate, 99 per cent primary enrollment rate, the Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojna for tribals and a 10 per cent growth rate for agriculture, highways and urban development. Gujarat is a model for all of this."
"Take any five years from BJP rule and any five years from UPA rule -compare the number, the duration and the reasons behind the riots that happened," Shah said.
Responding to a question about allegations that the BJP uses riots as a way to gain political ground, he said: "Under BJP, there have been less riots. If it was the votes that we were looking for, wouldn’t there have been more riots?"
"Today, I feel very good," Shah said. "I have seen Modiji go through a lot. He has set an example."